Konnichiwa, Sayonara
by Kinakao
Summary: The beginning. An average girl is brought into the world of her dreams. A tale of forming bonds that surpass even those of time and space. An adventure of finding out the truth and why some things are never as they appear.
1. The Challenge

**Konnichiwa**, _Sayonara_ ------- **Hello**, _Goodbye_

I do not own Yugioh. The names will look like this:

How the name is used/The way some people know it

Yuugi – Yuugi Mouto

Yami – Yami Yuugi

Ryou -Normal Bakura

Bakura -Y. Bakura

Honda - Tristan

Jounouchi/Joey - Joey

Anzu - Tea

Ishizu -Ishizu (Malik's sister or Isis)

Seto - Kaiba

Mokuba - Mokuba

Mai - Mai

Grandpa - Solomon

Me: I think I have them all…..Oh! One more.

Mari/Rhea - Mari/Rhea (Pronounced Marr-ee and Re-ah))

Kinakao: The only thing I own in this story is Mari/Rhea, the chant Mari says….and her mom. That's it. Now on with Konnichiwa, Sayonara!

  
-Prologue- 

"Mother's gonna kill me." I muttered under my breath. "I can't use the 'Sleep Walking' alibi, she'd locked the door." I spoke to keep myself company as I pushed my way through the dense forestry. Quickening my pace, I clutched my dueling deck in my balled up fist. I winced as my arm brushed up against a sharp edge on a branch. If my body was going to get all banged up, it would protect my deck in the process.

My destination held itself in my head like a framed picture. A remote area of the wooded area, just a half-mile down from the Mahogany residence. The scheduled time approached fast. I had been summoned for a midnight duel in private, so that who ever came out champion—Which I already could see who it would be, since she came oh-so prepared—Would not make the loser feel the worse.

Okay, a 12:21AM duel. It was still in the woods and middle of nowhere.

With little to no light, my eyes scanned the wilderness. The trees looming over the grassy floor, casting shadows in the silence, made me shudder with a sudden chill. Had I been a prey, I surely would have been eaten already.

Still, I felt confident. The only reason I came out here fell on my pride. Within the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!, I had an uncountable number of wins, and my opponents fell to me rather easily. The casualty tonight would be someone I didn't know. Or, at least was sure I did not know. My invitation to this desolate plot of land was just for a piece of paper left in my locker. The scribbled note read: "Meet me at 12:20 for a duel. Be no later than 12:21. Your friend, B."

I will inform you now. My mouth possibly needs a good cleaning when my temper flares. An empty, dark area when a duel is suppose to take place only seconds from this moment works wonders with my rage. "Damnit, B! Come out here, now! Or you'll be sorry!" My voice echoed through the hanging branches. My awaited answer didn't arrive. A small grumble rumbled my vocal cords, escaping my lips in the form of words. "I'm going to find you and kick your sor—Huh?" My words died on my lips before I finished my sentence. My brown hues found a scrap of paper lying innocently only a few inches from where I stood. Crouching down, I plucked the manufactured tree, reading the scribbles it held.

"Thank you for coming out.'" It began, my voice lowering as my eyes followed the markings. "Look up, and everything will be clear'" My eyes struggled against me as I kept them tied to the remaining words, being defiant of the note's orders. "Speak clearly: Narau Saki La Sou Otu!'"

My voice silenced on the last syllable. Below my feet, a rushing wind came up from the ground, the paper dissolving into a cinder between my fingers. My brown locks whipped around my ears as my eyes darted upwards. Hovering only a few feet above me, a large blue circle spun, incasing me in a small area under the blue light that descended. It was only a few moments that I kept this vision in my sight; Soon after, my sight faded under soothing black velvet.

  
Chapter One: Welcome to Domino!

I felt light beating against my weary eyelids. Slowly, orbs peeked out from the cover, instantly shutting once the light pierced my cornea. I sat myself up, tensing my shoulders and letting a soft groan escape my lips. After a few moments of letting the sleepy stupor wear off, I risked opening my eyes again. Surrounded by lilted trees, I realized I still resided in the forest. However, the way the trees moved, the way the ground looked, and just the feel of my surroundings were different than before.

The light made me curious of the time. The last I remembered, the whole forest had been cloaked in darkness. I lifted my left arm to glance at the time. Only taking half a second to register the time, my head swung back to stare at the electronic device. At first glance, it read 12:21AM. However, at my second look, it gave a spine chilling 3:45PM reading. I could hear my mother's yells and punishment in my ears, even though I thought her to be a half mile away. My thoughts raced of how to return home and how to talk out of my impending doom. I started by my attempts to stand. A light dizziness took over my senses as I tried to recall what happened the night before. But, at the moment I could not concern myself with that. I had to go home, make up a story, and pray I lived to be eighteen.

I let my feet carry me as fast as they could. I dodged branches, occasionally getting hit with a leaf or two as I ran. I only had a few more feet before the brush gave way to broad daylight, to a familiar road and a familiar city. My expectations cut short as I came sliding to a stop on the grassy ground. The sight before me was familiar, but not what I had expected. A large animated tower loomed over smaller, but also animated, buildings and houses. A vast city, but still small enough for people. Domino City: Home to Yu-Gi-Oh!, the card game, to my favorite afternoon entertainment.

Backpedaling, my eyes grew wide as I tried to absorb this sudden twist in my life. "What…Happened? What on earth…?" I asked myself, half expecting some little voice to give me an answer. My mind raced with thoughts of all the times I wished to arrive here and see the wonderful city in the television set, never believing it would actually happen. Worries of my previous thoughts seemed to vanish and excitement swiftly replaced them. What was I to do now that I was here?

"Welcome, Mari." A familiar voice washed into my ears, causing me to tense and whip around completely to face who I had heard.

In front of me stood a slim and youthful looking boy, no older than me. His animated features stunned me, sweetness touching his lips just enough to give him a gentle look, while his white hair ran wild past his shoulders and down his back. The sound of his British voice made his character almost seem infallible as he stood a few feet from me. I knew the tone well, having seen the show too many times for my own good. He was unmistakably Ryou. His "alter ego" Bakura must have been sleeping at that moment.

My jaw slackened as I attempted my best at a good series of questions. "Ryou! What the…How did you…When did you….Huh?" It had sounded much better in my head.

His calm composer seemed to get to me worst. He raised his hands; I flinched in response, but he merely held them in front of his chest to show he meant no harm to me. "It's alright, Mari. You have no reason to worry." I was so sure of that. "I'm the only one here that knows who you are." He spoke as if all his words could encase me in a sense of security.

Instead, I was utterly confused. Thoughts rushed at me at all sides. _Ryou left the challenge in my locker? How did he know I even existed? This has to be a dream! A wondrous dream; I had too much pizza last night and I'm having a weird dream! He isn't real. He's just a cartoon!_

I shook my head to gather only the important point I had: All of this was not real. "Look," I started, gathering enough bravado to grin as I raised my arms with a shrug and let them fall across my chest. "I ate too much last night, and now I'm having a dream." I shook my head and gave a soft laugh as he gave a blank expression to my words. "So, thanks for the offer, but I'm off now."

With the swift movement of my hand, I took my skin between my forefinger and thumb, and squeezed with as much strength as I could muster. I scrunched up my face in pain and let a sharp intake of breath be my only sound. As soon as I released, I opened my eyes and blinked several times. Still here. Curse that old wives' tale.

Ryou's lips curled into a small grin as a short series of chuckles escaped his lips. "This is no dream." He stated as I bit my lip with worry. "All you see is as real as you and me." I had my doubts whether or not the latter person truly was as he said, but reading my expression, he merely shrugged. "Stay awhile and have some fun." He suggested; giving in to the fact I would not easily believe anything he said. "I advise you use a false name. Never know who's looking for you." He said it all in a calm voice. I didn't even think about it until much later. "Do you have any nicknames?" He asked, much more pronounced.

The only nicknames I could recall were rather embarrassing and obviously not real names I could use. Once in middle school, I had been known as "Marilando." I would die before using that name in a new world. Instead of nicknames, my mind went to names I wanted to use rather than my (what I considered) dull name. The first that occurred to me had originated from deep in my childhood. "How does 'Rhea' sound?" I asked, not really concerned about his opinion; I needed to know if it would pass here as a real name.

His lips curled into a full fledge smile as he spoke. "Rhea is a beautiful name." He complemented. My eyes rolled to the side, avoiding looking at him, trying not to feel in the least bit flattered. However, in that short amount of time, he managed to arrive within inches of my body, leaning in to whisper. "The next time," assuring me we would meet again, "do not mention this meeting. Just pretend we're strangers…My dear Rhea." His breath tickled my ear, and I resisted turning, unsure of what actions my happen if I dared to face him.

To my surprise, his sudden closeness and his sour-sweet scent filling my nostrils made my face turn a cherry pink. I didn't recall ever being a Ryou fan. I finally built the courage to face him head on, but by the time I turned my head, he had vanished. Glancing around for the white-hair boy, I spotted a clear looking pond. Pressing myself forward towards it, my eyes still searched for my host for this world. Arriving at the pond, I took a slow breath, exhaling exaggeratedly. My eyes fell onto the water, searching for an answer in the stillness. Instead, I found an unfamiliar reflection. My legs gave out under me as I fell to my knees, eyes wide.

Staring up at me with the same shocked expression, a youthful girl with a smooth creamy skin, small pointed nose, and animated features. My almond-shaped eyes now held a circular orb within a rectangle, similar to Yami's eyes. My hair, which fell into the pond and causing ripples, a deep black compared to the red stands that intertwined with my dark brown hair beforehand. I noticed my clothing had greatly varied as well. Remembering to wear my lucky black Yu-Gi-Oh! shirt and jeans to go out to the duel, the outfit I wore now looking nothing of the sort. My chest and stomach were barely covered with a white T, while my legs were exposed, but with the little coverage of army green shorts. My shoes, a golden pair of sandals that held themselves up by a string tied around my ankles. The pieces of clothing were of the category of 'Make sure to never waste money on.'

It took a few moments, but my eyes adverted from my new image and onto the city I was destined for. Slowly, my legs gained strength as I faced towards the large Kaiba building. Feeling myself alone, I spoke softly into the gentle breeze.

"This day's going to be very interesting, isn't it?"

Alright! Chapter one up! Please rate and review! Chapter two will be up soon!


	2. Love With A Commotion?

_Konnichiwa_, **Sayonara**----_Hello_, **Goodbye**

Kinakao: Here's the second chapter! In case you didn't read the last chapter, this is a _Shojo_ Fanfic. Love, romantic things and possibly crying, possible death in later chapters. (What kind of shojo has death?) Anyways, I have my friend Tamora here to help me do the disclaimer.

Tamora: Kinakao does not own Yu-Gi-Oh, any of it's characters, and I own myself. She also does not own Burger World.

Chapter 2: Love With A Commotion?

Walking into the semi-large city, I exhaled. Without a way home, I forced myself to take Ryou's suggestion. My shoes, mere sandals that held up by a golden strap across my ankles, padded against the cement as I wandered aimlessly. I did not know where I should go; So many places I had seen in the Domino City episodes, but I could hardly remember how to get to them. All I had ever done with this city was view it in the background.

Having been there for almost an hour, and without any luck to find a familiar place or even a familiar face (Which, without knowing a single person there except for the Yu-Gi-Oh! group, would have been a bit difficult), my mind slowly wandered to the reason for the difficulty of navigating the city. For the characters that lived in this city, I was certain that finding the right path might be easier because the scenes switched on their own for them.

My thoughts wandered to the characters that occupied this city. Lingering on the thought of the lead character, Yuugi, my cheeks shifted to a shade darker. But honestly, it was not the spiky-haired youth that caused this reaction. His alter ego, Yami: The Ancient Pharaoh and Duelist Extraordinaire, caught my attention more. I based some of my bias on height; Yuugi standing an inch shorter than me; Yami at a stature of two inches taller, or so my internet sources informed me.

Too distracted by my thoughts of my impossible crush, I no longer paid attention to my surroundings or those around me. I found this to be unwise, suddenly crashing into another body, sending me to the ground with a wince as I landed on my rear. My impact did not soften any by a female voice stained with warning above me. "Hey, watch where you're going, please?"

Without looking up, I could tell who I crashed into. My chin lifted my face to stare straight into the ocean blue eyes of a tall brunette. Her hands curled on her hips as she sent attitude down towards my fallen form. Instead of standing up to her or apologizing, a goofy grin spread on my lips. I had no doubt; This girl was unmistakably Anzu Mazaki: childhood friend of Yuugi Mouto. My excitement exploded as I jumped up, exclaiming. "Anzu! It's so cool to meet you!" Many heads turned in my direction, then simply ignoring my outburst.

Anzu batted her bright eyes several times, dropping her arms to her sides in surprise. Obviously the young dancer had no experience in random people off the street recognizing her. Her look of amazement made me curious of my actions; I knew many fans of the show that would eagerly greet the characters with enthusiasm. Then I realized the difference. They had no idea about how well-known they were. Before I could make amends, my peripheral vision caught the form of a boy moving out from behind Anzu. His spiky, tri-colored hair gave away his person: The duelist Yuugi Mouto.

My eyes turned from elevated girl (Anzu's height when I stood straight let her tower over me) to the male youth, my eyes matching at his level. He stood taller than I anticipated; Perhaps the informants from my world may have misinterpreted the statures of the characters. Shock coated his facial features, which I did not understand. However, I took this as a chance to cover my moments of mental absence and excitement. My hand shot out from its tense position at my side to the hand of the boy. The soft skin of his hand pressed against mine as I gave a strong handshake. My voice raised with excitement again; This time had more control. "Oh! Yuugi Mouto! It's so awesome to meet the champion of Duelist Kingdom!" My greeting now grew to the point where I nearly shook his entire body. I neared a good clearing, but my mouth ran on without monitor. "I heard about you through my good friend, Mai."

My innards twisted into a knot. The phrase: '_open mouth, insert foot_' rung in my head as I stared at the confused faces of the two friends. I had not come across Mai, or much less knew if they had met her either. If they had and asked her about me, all my false words would find themselves back in my face. My hand finally released Yuugi's, his eyes dropping to it; Watching it swing behind me to intertwine with my other as my form fell into a shy stance. His eyes shot back up to mine, the confusion more pronounced. "Duelist Kingdom?" He asked, the phrase foreign to him.

My eyes batted quickly, confused. _They haven't gone to Duelist Kingdom? Maybe events happen differently here than in the show._ I rationalized, unwilling to give in and take the label of a psychotic freak on the street. I thought of other events that might have occurred to make the boy famous and a reason for my thrill to see him. _I hope this works,_ I prayed silently.

My lips parted as a brought my shoulders up to brace myself for the lie. "I mean, it's awesome that you beat Seto Kaiba." I spoke in a matter-of-fact tone. I fought against the shiver in my spine. Many Seto fans would kill to have the chance I did of tracking the elusive Seto and meeting him; I personally thought of him as a creep. I rejoiced when Yami beat him repeatedly.

Yuugi gave a broad, yet humble smile as he nodded with recognition. "Thanks, but Seto is a great opponent." He complemented the teen millionaire. I resisted rolling my eyes. I focused them on Yuugi's soft violet eyes as his peered back into mine. His smile softened as he spoke again. "Well, you know our names." He began, raising his hand up to gesture to me. "Why not tell us yours?"

His friendly voice encouraged me to focus on my story, still writing itself in my head. I made sure to not mar my chance at a good start. "My name is Rhea; I'm new in town. Mind showing me around?" I would not let myself get lost again. I aimed my request to both of them, but my result varied: Yuugi's cheeks turned to a pretty shade of red as he nodded, while Anzu found a lamppost more interesting than my plea; Grudgingly accepting along with him.

...

"…And this is Burger World. They make the best burgers ever; Plus Anzu works here, so she can use the discount when we all go there." Yuugi informed me, the mentioned waitress having calmed down and nodding a little. We had wandered across the city and I insisted they show the places they knew best.

My eyes scanned the building a little, finding it to be smaller than I had imagined; Proportions in this world differed more than I cared for. We stood outside to only pass it by. "They don't know she's underage, right?" I meant to say it as a question, but it came out as a fact. Every place we went that I remembered from the episodes, my questions were well-known facts.

However, Yuugi went without notice; Or just ignored it. With a happy smile, he cheered, "That's right." His enthusiasm had me speechless. "You can sure guess a lot about us." He commented almost with pride. I let a small chuckle escape my lips as I shrugged gently. "I'm just lucky, I guess." I raised my hand up to my cheek and gently rubbed it with the tip of my finger. _It helps that I watch you all the time, Yuugi_. I silently confessed.

Finally reaching her limit, Anzu tugged Yuugi's arm to pull him over to the side. I bit my lip a little in worry; I did not know if Anzu caught on. I allowed myself to admire the animation of Burger World while they talked. The tall teen craned over Yuugi and spoke hastily in a hushed tone. "Yuugi, she has so obviously spied on us! She could have stalked us, or worse, she could be a maniac like Marik!" Her hands stretched out to further her argument, but telling Yuugi was like talking to a wall. His lips parted to rise in my defense, when we heard a loud racket from inside the restaurant.

The sound of crashing plates and tables echoed through the burger shop, pooling even outside. "What do you mean, 'We **don't** have veggie burgers?!'" A female voice shrieked in outrage. I jumped in surprise; Both from the crashing sounds and the familiar voice. Except, the voice did not belong to anyone of this world. Normally, I would have walked away and get far from the chaos; but my curiosity got the best of me. Without realizing what I did, my feet carried me inside the war zone. I think Yuugi called for me to stop, but my determination pressed me forward. I had to make sure I was right.

One foot on a table, the other on the cushion of a booth seat, there she stood. Short (Even shorter than Anzu's) brown hair flew wildly around her lower cheeks; Her blazing blue eyes held a hint of green around the pupils. Her left hand wielded a long metal pole while her right wore brass knuckles; Violence emitted from her body. I had been right. She was no Yu-Gi-Oh character, but familiar all the same. "Tamora?" I called, my voice simple, yet strong enough to call over the rest of the noise.

Her response glare accompanied her defiant, "Who wants to know?" Anyone else would have turned coward and ran. A smile broke out on my face; I could have cried from joy. This made her features tighten further, until I spoke. "Tamora! It's me, Mari!" I watched as her features melted into shock. It seemed like I received that expression from too many people today.

Tamora's face softened into a smile as she jumped down from her throne of destruction, lowering her weapons as she neared me. "Mari? My God; What the hell happened to you?" She searched my face, looking for some familiar sign of her friend from her world. Her eyes widened as she realized she could have answers. "Where the hell are we?" Her most important question. She never watched Yu-Gi-Oh; I took a few minutes to explain the short details. I needed more time for the larger facts of this new world.

After a few moments of explanation, I patted her on the back. "You need a new name. Mine's Rhea. What name do you want?" I asked, letting everything soak in, but remembering the short amount of time that we had before Yuugi and Anzu rushed in to save the day. She thought for a short second before responding, "Joan. I'll respond to it too." She gave a thumbs-up with her brass-covered fingers. I nodded, recalling the strong card that she knew nothing of.

Our only punishment for the mess contained but a few words: Never come back to the establishment again. We gracefully left and I felt better that we had not involved Yuugi or Anzu; Especially the latter. The aforementioned duo waited outside for my return; I mentally affirming this when Yuugi rushed up to me without notice of Tamora and took my hand worriedly. "Are you alright, Rhea?" He asked, his voice streaked with more worry than his face contained. I could not help but feel a surge of blood fill my cheeks thanks to his touch. "What happened?" He pressed against my silence.

My free hand rose, my fingers and thumb curling into a fist except for my index finger, which aimed directly at Tamora. "This is Joan, my friend from my old town." I spoke honestly. My words came as a shock to me instead of the lax lying feeling I expected. I had started using tenses that made it seem as if I planned on staying in this foreign land. _I can't stay here forever,_ I told myself sternly. However, my moral weakened slowly. _Can I?_

Tamora, now proclaimed Joan, let a pesky grin creep onto her thin animated lips. Although obvious to all who surrounded us, Yuugi and I had no idea how we looked together. She nudged me, breaking my thoughts into a million pieces. "Hey." She started, leaning over and covering the side of her mouth, yet spoke loud enough where even Anzu, who stood many feet away, could hear her. "I think that boy likes you, Mari." She giggled, but it ceased when my eyes shot to her with daggers. She quickly gained on her mistake. "I mean, Rhea." She chuckled a little.

From Joan's words, I could see red from both Anzu and Yuugi; Yuugi's cheeks blasted with a cherry red from embarrassment and Anzu seemed to see red, fuming as she glared at both my friend and the innocent butt of the joke, me. However, the previous two both asked in unison, although different tones (Anzu's between clenched teeth and Yuugi with pure curiosity towards me), "Mari?"

An urge to smack Joan made my right hand tense with anticipation; I had two reasons: For saying that Yuugi liked me and for my real name. I recalled going over not using my name several times with her while still inside, but it apparently did no good. I felt that covering made my plate too heavy. "Yeah, Mari's my middle name." I explained simply, shaking Yuugi's hand off of mine before shrugging. "But, I really don't like it, so she won't ever do it again, right?" My eyes flicked back to Joan with a piercing gaze. Her response consisted of a laidback shrug.

Anzu moved her way up warily, extending her hand out to Joan. She stared at it for a moment before rising her own and gripping Anzu's hand strongly. I gave a mental thanks to Ra that Anzu received the hand without the brass knuckles or metal pole. My eyes shot back to Yuugi to gage his reaction. However, it was now my turn to flush a bright red.

I can never be sure as to the true cause of it; Possibly of Joan's fearsome look, or just the fact he had grown tired of standing around us, but Yuugi transformed into Yami right before my eyes. His height also varied from my expected account: He rose above me by good three or four inches. His sleek eyes fell in contact with mine, and I hardly remember what happened right after; I zoned out and may have been drooling. The next thing I knew, Joan shook me and shouted in my ear, "Yo! Rhea, wake up, girl." Thankfully, it managed to snap me out of my trance, and immediately latched onto Yami's arm.

To my surprise, Yami did not mind my sudden closeness unlike Anzu. However, she did not seem to fume as badly as expected; I did not notice too much of her though. My focus remained on the guy next to me. "Say," I began, smiling up to him. "Why don't you take me to the game shop?" I asked, remembering Yuugi mention it earlier along with his grandfather. "I'd love to see it." I resisted added more to that sentence, already beyond any help. Yami returned the smile, melting me away. He affirmed with a cool nod, and we were off to our next stop.

...

Kinakao: Okay! That was chapter two. Please comment!


	3. A Chance For Charity

**Chapter 3: A Chance For Charity**

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh, the characters inside the series, any cards, any weapons that may be mentioned, and none of the places inside the world of YuGiOh!

I do however, own Mari/Rhea, Tamora/Joan, Charity, Karen, the high school, the forest, and everything in the "real world."

It's been a while, but I hope fans are still ready for more!

Chapter 3

My arm linked around Yami's slim, yet strong arm, a smile plastered on my face. I could feel the hate pouring off of Anzu as she stared holes into the back of my head. Joan, her hands up behind her head, crossed as she held her metal pole behind her back, did not seem to care how I acted. She was already off in her own world, taking in the scenery of this one. She had never watched YuGiOh!, much less played the game. So, instead of a world that was slightly familiar (like how it was for me), it was completely brand new to her. We had traveled for about a good eight minutes before approaching the store. This store seemed to be the only place that seemed to perfectly fit how I had seen it on the show. The green roof shined and the large red windowed door stood as if only an hour before, Yuugi's grandfather had cleaned it.

I finally let go of Yami's arm once we had arrived and some of Anzu's anger seemed to disappear, but not much to let me know socializing was a bad idea. Once I had relinquished my touch, a once confident Yami had reverted wordlessly back into the smaller Yuugi. I had not noticed until I turned around to speak to all of them at once, my eyes dropping to him as he looked away to the ground, mumbling something. Looking back to the rest of them, I smiled brightly and jerked my head towards the store. "Let's go!" My arm rose in a cheer-like fashion as I turned back around and marched straight into the shop.

My feet stopped dead in their tracks as I looked into the shop. My heart froze and I could feel some of the color draining out. After seeing walls lined with games, my eyes fell upon a youth I had just seen recently. His white hair was all too familiar as my mind flashed back to the close proximity he had once been and my cheeks flooded with red, stemmed from embarrassment and rage. "You…" I began, my voice becoming flooded with a strange mix of emotion. The boy, Ryou, turned away from a man with grey hair, dressed with a bandana and green overalls. The elder man gave the kids a welcoming warm smile, as did the youth. Ryou tilted his head innocently, giving his smile a more natural appearance. "Why, hello Yuugi, Anzu. Who are your friends?" His voice was clean and crisp, as I had always remembered it being when I watched it from far away.

Yuugi stepped out from behind me and pushed his way in through the door. "Hello, Ryou." He greeted his friend kindly, before turning his side towards the group and pointing to Joan and me. "This is Rhea and Joan. We found them downtown and decided to give a tour." Joan rushed up behind me and stared wide-eyed at the boy in front of us, and smiled almost a stupid smile. "Wow…" She sighed. I could not help but roll my eyes. _Oh no…_ I thought. _Not him, please anyone but him…_

Ryou stepped out towards us, extending a hand as a friendly gesture for mine. "Hello Rhea and Joan. My name is Ryou." My back had stiffened and did not want to trust him. Every part of me wanted to ask him more of why he wanted me here and why Joan was here. He had challenged me to a duel, but Joan had nothing to do with this world and the people in it. I looked at Joan as she frowned when I extended my hand, attempting to be friendly. What I found odd was the change in her appearance as I watched her expression go from lovesick, to almost what seemed as shock. I did not realize that Ryou had decided to take my hand up and kiss it. "It is a pleasure to meet you." He murmured against my skin.

This was the last straw. I took my hand back, nearly slapping his smooth cheek with it, and turned around. I did not even see the look on Yuugi's face as he called after me. Some strange name that some psycho character in a cartoon show had asked me to forge. I did not care anymore. I was not going to be the play thing of someone who was not even real. Tears formed in my eyes, a mix of emotions hitting me all at once: Anger, sadness, disappointment, and the want to go home. I stormed out of the store, pushing aside Joan. My steps turned from angered stomps into a run as soon as I left the door, and darted around to the side, headed back into the city. I closed my eyes, trying to hold back the tears that I knew would come, when all of the sudden, I slammed straight into someone. I was knocked over and fell for the second time that day. It vaguely occurred to me to actually watch where I was going, even if I was emotional. I looked up and saw a gorgeous blonde with bright blue eyes. Her hair fell to about mid back, her eyes soft and round like Yuugi's. Her green knit top and jeans outfit made me feel almost naked comparatively.

A look of shock coated her features as she quickly apologize, "Sorry! I didn't see you there." She spoke, her voice was like a soft melody. This voice seemed so familiar to me, but I could not place where. She extended her hand out to me and offered to help pick me up. Incredibly accepting of her offer, I nodded and clasped her hand with my own. However, for a moment, time seemed to freeze around us, a shiver going up my spine as I spoke aloud, "Sou Ruwa Oushi Tara Honoshi Taei!" The words flowed out like a stream of knowledge as I noticed small bubbles surrounding both me and this girl. Her eyes were wide with surprise, which shot up above her to a swirling blue portal. Then, all went dark.

**...**

I could hear the soft sounds of crickets around me when I awoke. My eyes stared up at the sky for a few moments, not a thought in my mind. It was a dark shade of black with stars speckling across it like paint had been splashed gently across the sky. Suddenly, everything hit me. The sky was real, the trees were blowing in the wind that did not have an animated touch. I was back in the forest, the forest down from my house, in the real world. I looked around for the girl whom I had grabbed, but no one was around in the dead of night. I inspected myself and found to both a relief and disappointment that I had my lucky YuGiOh! shirt and jeans. I checked my wrist watch. This time it read 5:30 AM. Lifting myself up to my feet and grabbing my deck in the process, I bounded off for my home, racing the clock for the limited time I knew I would have before my mother would wake up.

**...**

Karen Mahogany marched up the stairs to her daughter's bedroom at a prompt 6:15 AM. She knew something was amiss, since Mari had not responded to her calls for breakfast. "Mari…You better be in there…" She murmured, holding a ladle in her hand. It could possibly be used as a weapon, but it mostly was for making the oatmeal she had prepared for her daughter. "Mari, what are you doing?"

There stood in the middle of the room Mari Mahogany, facing away from her mother as she smoothed out the collar to her uniform shirt. Turning her head to face the older brunette and smiled sweetly at her. "Yes, Mom?" was the subtle reply to the rude entrance to her room. She was fully dressed and ready for school. Karen bit her lip and backed out, a small smile on her lips. "Nothing, sweetheart. Your breakfast is ready." Slowly closing the door, she returned down back to the kitchen, to get ready for the day.

**...**

That day at school, I could not concentrate for the life of me. Tamora was not in school at all, and she never was sick. Being a vegetarian, she always seemed to be healthier than most people. It was the talk of the day and I felt sick to my stomach. I tried to convince myself it was all a dream, but things seemed to lean against my favor.

For lunch, I went out to the usual fountain where many people would hang out to play YuGiOh on some days. The fountain had stopped using water yeas before and merely had a stone angel looking down on the games that would be played, like a goddess of luck. Normally, she would favor those who used their skills for good and were not underhanded in their dueling. However, today she would be watching only me, seeing how no other duelists were around, I was forced to eat my turkey sandwich in local silence. At least, until a melodic voice spoke up behind me. "Good to see you made it home safe."

With sandwich half way in my mouth, I nearly choked on the thing due to fright. I slowly turned around, expecting to see an animated girl behind me, stalking me from my dream. Instead, I saw a girl with short blond girl with thick black glasses. She was pretty, in a sort of nerdy way. I spit out my sandwich and could not help but stare at her for a moment. "You're…Charity Braxton." I said slowly, not believing my eyes. Charity Braxton was one of the smartest and beloved students at her school. Best of all, no one could ever beat her in a duel. She was the princess that our school treasured that hardly ever got out from her pedestal to come to the fountain. Her reaction to my surprise was of amusement, a smile playing on her lips as she lowered her glasses slightly, showing off her bright blue eyes. "Yes, I am. I hope you don't mind that I left you. I didn't know where you lived." She sat down next to me, her navy pleated skirt an inch within regulations, like a proper student.

This caught me completely off guard. I had no idea what she was talking about, since I had never even formally met her before. She noticed my ignorance and became impatient with me. "Last night? In the forest? You know, when we came back." She leaned in closer, which made me recoil as if she was a garden snake: Harmless, but still makes people uncomfortable in only that special way. Her eyes searched mine for recognition and as my mind played back my night with Yuugi's face right at the top of fresh memories, she broke out into a smile and nodded. "Yes, you remember. We were in—"

"No, we weren't." I cut her off. I repacked my sandwich and placed it in the lunch bag, now calming myself as I closed my eyes and stood up. "That place…It was all a dream." I took a step away from my seat at the fountain and turned around to face her, my dark eyes lingering on her blue ones. "It does not exist." I said, confidently. Despite what I may have thought about her possibly dropping the subject after that never came into existence. She jumped up from her seat and clasped my hands between hers and looked at me sternly. "It is real. We were both there. The world of YuGiOh exists!" She exclaimed. I immediately tore my hands away from hers and stood my ground a few feet away. I knew it did. I knew it existed and that I had somehow gone there and back overnight. I hung my head down to stare at my feet, as if they might give me the answer I needed.

"You're right." I said, finally after about a minute of silence with the sound of defeat. "You're right, it is real." This put a smile on her face, but mine only allowed a sad smile as I drug my feet back to the seat at the fountain, plopping myself down next to her. I leaned over my thighs, elbows pressing into my legs without notice and intertwining my fingers between my knees as I spoke softly and meaningfully. "But I am never going back."

**That's the end of chapter 3! Thanks for keeping up! I'll be adding more soon!**


	4. Restored Dreams

Chapter 4

Kinakao: Hi there folks! We're here for another chapter. Yay!

Charity: Don't we have to say we don't own anything? I don't want to be sued.

Kinakao: Yes, yes. Here we go:

I do not own YuGiOh or any of its characters or places.

I do own the real world mentioned here, the chants, Mari/Rhea, Tamora/Joan, and Charity/Daida.

Charity: You don't own me, woman!

Kinakao: We'll get this worked out. Enjoy!

...

Chapter 4: Restored Dreams

"What did you say?" Charity asked, staring at me with wide blue eyes. The shocked blonde could not believe her ears. After just admitting to both myself and out loud that the world I had always dreamed about existed, I now no longer wanted to have anything to do with it.

"You heard me." I said, my dark brown eyes colder as I looked up her. She was standing in front of me, entirely confused. Her look made me feel like as if someone had granted me my wish, and I was suddenly throwing it away. "I can't go back." I breathed out, breaking the stare to look to the ground. It made me feel guilty, which part of me knew I should be. I stood up, putting a hand on my hip as I tried to explain as I looked back to her. "I…We…Don't belong there. It isn't our world!" I had thrown up my hands in an attempt to explain myself.

Charity was unconvinced. "Mari…" She said slowly, and I vaguely wondered how she even knew my name. "We do belong in that world too. If we didn't, why could we go there?" She pressed her glasses to her face with her middle finger as she looked at me. "We were chosen." She added, being somewhat cryptic.

I shook my head, "If you believe Ryou, then fine. His normal self might be what's appearing, but you and I know how his other side is." I spoke as I moved my hand to point to my abdomen, about the place where the millennium ring would be. This seemed to confuse Charity. "You got to meet Ryou? I haven't had the chance yet." She tilted her head to place a finger on her cheek. "He says we're chosen too?"

I had too many moments of saying more than I should have around people in the past few days. I placed my hand on my forehead as I spoke. "Look. We do not belong. How long could we really stay there? It would just be a hello, then a goodbye." My heart gave a small ache, which I ignored. Once was all I needed.

Charity became serious. "Are you telling me, that just because we cannot live our dreams forever means we should not do them at all?" She walked around me and almost as if I was some exhibition, began to study me. I cringed. "No." I replied softly, letting down my guard. "Look, I want to go back. I didn't even get to say goodbye." My eyes filled with tears unwillingly. I rose my hand up and pressed against my eyes with enough roughness to squeeze the tears away. Charity gave me a smile.

A pat on my shoulder and a skip away, Charity nodded and started towards the school building. "Listen, I'll explain more to you tonight. Come over and stay at my place for the night. It's just down meadow lane. You can't miss it." Before I was about to protest, she added cheerfully, "Don't worry, we'll get back there as soon as we can." My mouth closed and she skipped away, obviously cheerful about my decision.

I stood there for a moment dumbly, before turning around, grabbing my lunch. "I wonder how she knew my name…" I wondered aloud. However, I shook it off and following the path the blonde had left behind to return back to my classroom. I never knew that at that moment, the goddess of luck that had overseen the whole ordeal, summoned one faint drop of water loose to run down her cheek, her face frozen between happiness and despair.

**…**

Convincing my mother that I planned to spend the night to study with one of the smartest people I could find in my high school was probably one of the easiest things I had ever done in my life. Sneaking out to go duel, not cool, spending a night with a girl who could tell me to care about chemistry, a total go. It was further than what I was used to, so I rode my Next bicycle down meadow lane, seeing many very fine and ornate houses, all ones Charity could have lived in. I sighed, having the feeling I was going to get lost very easily.

It was then I saw a large, two story house a bit apart from the rest, but still able to be considered part of meadow lane. This one had a perfectly made garden and large iron gates. I parked the bike against the gates, securing it there with a lock. I opened the free gate with ease, allowing it to close behind me. The sun was just setting, and the porch lights greeted me with luminosity.

As if on cue, the door was opened by the bubbly blonde and she welcomed me into her house with the simple ceremony of grabbing my arm and dragging me in, almost making me leave my bag of clothes behind. Charity dragged me through the long hallways of her house and up to a room that was essentially blue and pink. A large king size bed had blue bedding and a comforter, with pink pillows. Much of the room was decorated the same way. She sat me down on a blue beanbag pillow on the floor, and rolled a pink one over and made it into her throne.

"Okay." I finally said after she had nestled herself across from me. "Do you promise to answer all of my questions?" I gave her a stern look to know that I wanted answers, and now.

She smiled and nodded, which in turn made her push her glasses back up on the bridge of her nose with the tip of her finger. "If I have the answer to give you." She promised. She leaned back and crossed her leg over the other, sitting almost as if she was a psychiatrist. It got on my nerves a little.

I breathed out slowly. "First, how do you know my name?"

Charity was quick. "I know everyone at the school." She nodded, but grinned at me. "I also found your school ID in your pocket."

I wanted to bang my head against a desk, but nothing that could help me, blue or pink, was around. "Okay. When did you go to the other side?" I asked, keeping pace.

Once again, she was right with me. "Yesterday, sometime after midnight." This time, I did not allow her to go any further. "How?"

At this point, she dropped her posture and leaned in close to me. "I honestly don't know. I was asleep one moment, then I woke up and I was in front of the museum. I want to know how you got us back." She now turned the tables on me. She looked at me with a very serious gaze.

My jaw dropped. "How should I know? I came to you for answers!" I hung my head. If I had known how this all worked, I wouldn't be in this situation in the first place.

Charity put a hand on me. "Yes, but we need to think of this together." I looked up and nodded. "So," She continued. "How did you get there in the first place?"

I thought about it. I spoke the whole story aloud, "I went to the woods to go to a duel set for 12:21AM, and I found a note there, where it said to…There was a chant I said!" I exclaimed. "It was on a note that Ryou sent me somehow…What was it…?" I asked myself, trying to remember. The paper had burned up, so I could no longer had it.

Charity clenched her hand a little and it actually hurt a little. "You have to remember." My eyes narrowed at her as I pushed her hand off of me and took a step back. "Whoa, wait," I interjected. "One last question before I try to get us back." She looked at me and nodded slowly, retracting her hand back towards her own body. "Why do you want to go back there so bad?"

Charity looked down at her hand and curled it into a fist. "I want to be able to meet him. I got to meet other people, but I want to meet…" Her eyes went up to a poster of the characters I had become so acquainted with: Yuugi, Yami, Anzu, and Joey. They were set up where Yuugi was between the two taller characters, and Yami was behind him. Her eyes lingered on the character on the left, which was a taller blonde male.

My jaw slackened. "Joey? You like Joey?" I said with disbelief. They were complete opposites, besides the hair color. The blonde jokes piled up in my mind.

A faint red coated her cheeks as she smiled at the poster lovingly. "He's just so cute…And sometimes so stupid, which is why I like him so much." I could not help but give a small laugh. So, she wanted the chance to meet him. I would have been more than happy to grant that.

"Alright, alright." I said, holding up my hands. "Well, let's see…I think it went something like this." I recalled what I remembered, looking up at her ceiling for the circle that was to come, "Narau Saki La Sou Otu!" I called out. I waited for the portal, but nothing happened. We waited a few more moments before Charity asked, "Was that just gibberish?"

I shot her a deadly look. "Shut up, it was not." I shook it off. "How about…We try when we came back. I said something different." I nodded and tried to remember. Those bubbles were around. "Let's see…I think it went…" I began to sound out what I remembered, "Sou…Ruwa….Oushi…Tara…." As I progressed, I could feel a surge of energy moving through my body. It felt like a cool current rushing about me. "..Honoshi…Taei!"

That moment, the energy stopped going through me, and time seemed to freeze for the moment. However, it was only that moment, then it was gone, and nothing had happened. I sighed. "I know that was it.."

Charity suddenly grabbed my wrist and stared at my watch. She looked at me, still holding my wrist, and spoke with great urgency. " Say it again. Now!" I stumbled for words, but nodded, repeating myself. "Sou Ruwa Oushi Tara Honoshi Taei!" This time, I was confident. I looked to the poster with Yuugi and Yami and smiled. _I'm coming back…_

The space above the two girls became a blue portal, swirling with bubbles surrounding them. Each bubble seemed to be moving up towards the portal, not popping when they touched it, but instead going through it. Charity smiled brightly and called into the portal, "Domino, here we come!" Those words were the final ones before I once again felt the velvet dark come over my eyes.

**…**

I felt like I was floating. I could hear voices around me, yet time seemed to be standing still for me. I could feel no movements, no life. **_"…help.."_**_ Help? Who needed help?_ **_"…She's…"_** _She who?_ I couldn't understand, but I could not seem to move any part of my body. My eyes were still closed, but I felt the soft touch of another forehead on mine, and the warmth made me try to part my lips. _Yuugi…?_ I thought, wishing I could even speak it softly, just wondering if I had finally passed the barrier between worlds. "No." A female voice whispered back, unfamiliar, yet I knew it somehow. "But you need to wake up." _Wake up? How had she even hear me?_ I could feel a tug on my body, making me feel like time suddenly started once more, and I felt the pressure of a bed underneath me.

**…**

"She's coming to!" I heard Joan's voice cry out next to me. Slowly, I opened my eyes and allowed them to gaze at each of the faces around me. Each one was animated and familiar. On my right side were Joan and Anzu, both looking over me with some relief, Yuugi and Ryou were on my left with the same expression. I turned my head more to my right to see Solomon speaking with a blonde girl, whom I knew on the other side to be Charity.

I sat up slowly and looked at them, confusion crossing my face. "Guys. What's going on?" I took further inspection of my location. I was inside Yuugi's bedroom, in his bed. My cheeks flared red.

Yuugi moved closer to grab my hand and explained. "Daida found you knocked out outside the shop. Luckily we were all here to help pick you up. You weren't out for long, maybe an hour or so." He seemed happy to see me awake, and I could almost sense a hint of pride at something. I did not bother to ask, but I did however ask, "Daida?" I glanced to Anzu who pointed to the blonde girl. I understood now. It was her name here.

At the sound of her name, the girl now dubbed Daida excused herself politely from Solomon and moved over to the bed. "Hey, good to see you feeling better. You had me worried. My name is Daida Raizen." She gave me a small bow of her head and smiled to me. "Think you can get up now?" She asked, only slightly worried.

I pulled my hand away from Yuugi tenderly before sliding myself fully off the bed and into a standing position. "Yeah. I'm good." I looked at Joan, who seemed to be nervous about something. I looked to the rest of them. "Say…Would you mind giving me a chance to talk to Joan and Daida alone?"

Each one had their own reactions to my question. Solomon gladly agreed and left the room without a word. Ryou seemed hesitant, almost as if he was afraid, and nodded slowly, leaving the room second. Anzu seemed glad for the chance to get away and reached around the side of the bed to grab Yuugi by the arm to drag him out. Yuugi went, but seemed to be content with leaving for the moment, aside from barely being able to keep up with the dragging.

I looked at the two of them for a moment, each becoming more expectant. As soon as I opened my mouth to speak, Joan leapt at me and hugged me around my neck. At least this time she was not armed with anything potentially lethal. "Mari, I've been so worried!" She exclaimed, allowing my real world name to slip once more. "You've been gone for almost four days! We had no idea what happened to you." She pulled herself back to look at me and analyze if I was actually alright.

I widened my eyes at her. "Did you say, four days?" I looked at Daida, who shared my same expression. "We only left last night and came back before even it had been twenty-four hours. That's impossible." I said, in complete disbelief. But, Joan persisted with the notion.

Daida then piped up. "It could be possible, if our worlds are running on separate times." She put her hand to her chin in thought. "See, we see this world in thirty minute to hour increments. Imagine how much time lapses. Our worlds cannot be running at a constant and equal state due to this." She nodded, thinking this to be the simplest explanation.

Joan looked at her, scowled, and then looked at me. "Rhea," she said, finally getting my name right. "Who the heck is this clown? How does she know where we're from?" She seemed to be getting ready to put on her knuckles, when I put my hand on her to stop.

I raised a hand to gesture towards Daida. "Joan, this is Daida. Also known as Charity Braxton." The look on Joan's face was near priceless and I wished I had a camera so I could keep it. "Daida, this is Tamora Strong." Daida smiled, knowing who Tamora was and shook her hand. Joan looked at me with an unbelievable stare and I nodded silently, confirming the screaming questions she had in her head. Neither one of us had ever met her formally before this whole ordeal.

After introductions, I finally got down to business. "Look, we need to make a plan for this world if we are going to be here for a while and figure out why we are here." Daida looked at me with a look that told me she had no intention of doing work until she met Joey. "We need a place to stay. Joan, where have you been staying?"

Joan shifted her weight, almost unwilling to tell. "Well…" She stared. "I've been living with Anzu, but I doubt she'll accept you there, Rhea." This puzzled me, and Joan gave a sigh as she explained further. "Look, she doesn't like the fact that some of the guys around here have been giving you some attention. She especially didn't like you calling out Yuugi's name while you were asleep." She rose up a hand and scratched her head.

I could not believe this was happening. My face was turning red and I had to think quickly. "What time is it, guys?" Joan grabbed my watch, turning my wrist upside down and essentially twisting my arm the wrong way, since I was the only one with a clock in the room. "About nine at night." I pulled my arm away from her angrily. This whole arm grabbing thing needed to stop. I gave her a brief nod though. . "Alright…I'll ask Yuugi if Daida and I can stay here, tomorrow we will go out to find some more information from the museum and downtown. Agreed?"

The other two nodded, and we went ahead and moved to the door. I grabbed the handle and looked down, and saw a shadow shift from under the door. I did not wait for the shadow to disappear and I flew open the door. I stuck my head out quickly, looking inside the hallway for who had been listening in. No one was anywhere around, and they would not have had time to get away. "What's wrong, Rhea?" Daida asked. I shook my head. "It's nothing." I replied, moving down the hall and stairs to the game shop area. No need for them to think I was crazy.

Joan raced me down and when I got there, I saw the four others gathered around the counter, checking out some new cards Solomon had received in a shipment. Joan ran up to Anzu and hooked her arm in hers, startling the tall brunette. "Come on, let's go home so I can get up early to get out of your hair." With that, Joan practically dragged Anzu out, everyone staring as Joan brandished her brass knuckles. I wondered how on earth Anzu had survived the past four days.

I turned to Yuugi and clasped my hands together in almost a begging sort of fashion. "Look, I promise to explain everything that has happened to me, but I really want a chance to rest. May Daida and I stay here until at least the morning?"

Solomon put down his newly acquired product and put his hands down on the glass case in front of him. He managed to speak before Yuugi could even open his mouth. "You girls are more than welcome to stay as long as you need, as long as you don't mind sharing a room." Yuugi gave a bright big smile at his grandfather's words, and took my hand and I grabbed onto Daida's arm at my captor's words. "Come on, I'll show you the room."

With no more words spoken, we were whisked away to the guest bedroom of the Mutou house, to have a good night of sleep and relaxation. I wanted to ask Daida so many more questions, but I knew they could wait until morning. As we went to bed, a shadow watching from a window retreated silently, disappearing into the night without any trace of ever even existing.

...

Kinakao: Wow! The longest chapter so far!

Charity: That's what happens when you actually get to your writings.

Kinakao: Go back to your room.

See you next chapter! Please review!


	5. Shopping!

Chapter 5

Kinakao: So sorry for the delay guys!

Daida: She was studying with me for her tests all this week.

Kinakao: My brain hurt…

Joan: You just need more veggies in your diet.

Daida: She can stay a carnivore. Look at me, I pass all my classes.

Joan: You look like you're getting kind of heavy too…Plus you're blonde…

Daida: WHAT DID YOU SAY?

Kinakao: I don't own YuGiOh or any of its characters. I do own those two who are fighting over there *points to Daida and Joan who are rolling on the ground* and Mari/Rhea. Please enjoy!

Chapter five: Shopping!

Warm, morning light poured in through the window of the guest bedroom in Yuugi's house. The light hit my eyelids, rousing me from my slumber grumpily. I took in a deep breath and turned on my side, trying to get the sun away from me. However, it was too late. My dreams were gone. My eyes opened slowly and a groan escaped my lips as I stared sleepily at the wall in front of me. My long black hair was a mess, and I slid out of bed, observing where my roommate had taken up shelter.

In the middle of the room, surround by a fort of pillows, Daida was fast sleep with a book still in her fingers. She had borrowed it from Solomon the previous night, wanting to know more about Ancient Egypt. More specifically, this world's ancient Egypt. I moved past her silently, hoping not to wake her from her dreams like the sun had so rudely interrupted mine.

For the night, I had borrowed a large shirt to sleep in, and since I figured that I was not going to be seeing anyone that morning since it was a school day, I thought it would be alright to go wake myself up with washing my face. Moving to the bathroom, I saw that the door was cracked open. Curious as to who was inside, I peeked inside to catch a glimpse of the mirror. There, I saw Yuugi, ready for school that day and drying off his face. As if he could sense me, he looked up at the mirror and then quickly turned around.

I panicked, not wanting him to see me as the total wreck I knew I looked, and quickly scampered away down the hall, gathering energy I did not think I had. As he came out to say something, I managed to trip up, leaning forward slightly, then caught my balance again and ran back into the room. This startled Daida awake. "What is going on?" She said, almost snorting as she woke up, looking around with one eye closed.

My face was flushed. "I think Yuugi saw my butt." I plopped down on the bed and crawled under the covers. "If he…" I began, but I heard a knock on our door, followed by a soft, "Rhea?" Yuugi's voice was nothing but concern, and I hissed at Daida, "Go answer it and tell him I'm asleep."

Daida stared at me for a moment, shook her head, to both wake herself up and slightly out of distain. "Fine…" She said. She put the book neatly down and got up, being smart and having slept in her clothes from the previous day. She cracked the door open and leaned against the frame sleepily. "Sorry Yuugi, Rhea's fast asleep." He blinked at her confused, but she continued. "You just think about what you saw and head on to school." Both Yuugi and I blushed furiously, and I wanted to hit Daida. Yuugi stumbled for words, but left all the same.

I pulled the covers over my head. "You're such a jerk." I commented, completely embarrassed.

Daida chuckled and shrugged a little, picking up the book she had put down. "I'm not the one running around half-naked. Besides, I'm sure you'll be the only thing on his mind for a while." The smirk she had on her face was irritating. I shifted in bed.

"I need to buy clothes." I mumbled, finally throwing myself out of bed to get dressed. "Come on, Daida…We need to head out." I spoke as I threw on my green army shorts. "Let's gather up Joan and hit the town." Daida silently agreed, and merely watched my dressing dance as I nearly tripped over myself trying to put the shirt on and move at the same time. I had no idea what to expect from a start like this.

**…**

Finally, once we made it outside, everyone had left for school. We knew we had to pick up Joan, but realized a rather large problem.

"So, do you know where she is?" I stared at Daida, who thought about it, opened her mouth, and then closed it again. "I don't know where Anzu's house is." I continued, placing my hand to my chin to think. Last night they had run out so fast, I had no idea where they went after they left the doors of the game shop.

"Hey guys!" I heard a call from down the street. I looked up and saw a familiar near-to-pixie-cut brunette running towards us. Thank Ra we did not have to search the whole city now. She came up to us, slowing to stop next to Daida. "I forgot to tell you where Anzu's place was, sorry. Probably for the best. She was up all night practicing her dancing, so she was a little grumpy this morning." Joan looked at me rose her shoulders in a gentle shrug.

I sighed. Basically, seeing my bright eyed, smiling face might have made the dancer want to kick me had I shown up before she went to school. "At least Yuugi will be able to keep her company today during school." I said, meaning that it would cheer her up to have him around her instead of me. I placed a hand on my hip. "Look, we need to gather information and find out what is going on. I think we should hit some stores, see if we can get clothes to better blend in, and then head to the museum."

Joan blinked and crossed her arms over her chest. "Why the hell are we going to go shopping? You know that you two still need to fill me in on things." Shopping was not the top priority in Joan's mind. In fact, she hated it.

"That's because Flash dancer here wants to buy some clothes." Daida jerked her head towards me, and grinned. I flushed red. Joan tilted her head, not understanding the nickname and I threw up my hands.

"Either way!" I started. "It will give us information. Let's go." I said as I started off towards downtown. At least I knew where that was. Daida shot Joan a smirk.

**…**

We had finally made to the downtown, and Joan was laughing her head off. Daida had told Joan of this morning and my face was a crimson color, being the (forgiving my own pun) butt of the joke. "I'd die if that happened to me." Joan laughed, wiping her eye from a tear that had formed. I grumbled. It was not as if I had intended to do such a thing.

We had arrived at a large department store, and I went ahead and quickly went inside. I found the women's apparel to be on the third floor, so we three girls found the elevator and went up. The doors opened to a wide area, with racks of clothing lining almost every single direction. "Whoa…" the three of us said in unison. There was nothing quite like this that any of us had ever seen. I looked to both of them, and smiled. "Shall we get to work?"

**…**

Forty-five minutes of just searching the clothes, pulling some out to look at and place in a basket we had found along the walls had created three huge piles of clothing that made the poor thing look like it would be crushed under the weight. The largest pile was surprisingly Joan's, who had found herself to be having more fun with it than she imagined.

"So, Joan, what have you learned about this place over the past few days?" I asked, inspecting a red top before putting it in the basket on my pile. She never had watched or known anything about YuGiOh, so I wanted to know what gaps she was missing.

Joan picked up a long black skirt from the aisle across from me, looking it over as she spoke. "Well, I know that they play this super popular game here called Duel Monsters, which I know you play too." She looked at me, giving me a look of mixed emotions.

I had always wanted Joan to learn Duel Monsters with me, but she was interested in having more of a social life. We were actually best friends on the other side, which I was glad to know bled through to here. She seemed both happy that she could at least now comment when the cast would talk about the card game, but also found it extremely annoying on the occasion.

"Oh," She continued. "I know that our friends are in high school with this super rich kid that seems to hate everyone and everything. And some bits about these artifacts that people are apparently wearing as accessories now. Ryou was telling me a little about them." She had been referring to the Millennium items, which both Daida and I stopped for a moment to look at each other. We knew about Ryou's Yami, Bakura. We did not want Joan mixed up with his twisted half while still thinking it was the sweet young Brit we had met.

I met with Joan's eyes. "Listen, just be careful around him. If he starts to act mean or hurtful, call one of us." I looked to Daida, who nodded. Joan seemed unfazed. More to the point, she did not care what we had to say, since she had already made her mind up about him. "Sure thing," she spoke absently.

It reminded me that I was still confused about some details that Daida did not answer. "Say, why did you grab my wrist yesterday when we were coming back?" I asked, glancing at my watch. According to the golden analog, it was still a bit before the afternoon.

Daida placed a silken pajama set in my pile. She looked at me and went back to sorting through the clothes. "You said when you came here, it was 12:21. I waited for it to be 7:07 exactly according to the watch you were wearing." She placed a pajama set in her pile as well. "I took a lucky guess with the numbers."

Joan jumped in. "You mean numerical palindromes?" Daida nodded.

I nodded in turn. That seemed to be a key factor as well. But it did not seem like a very reliable way to cross worlds, having to wait for a time in the day. Another question arose from my lips. "So, why was I out cold when we got here and you weren't, Daida?"

Daida finally stopped sorting the clothes and pushed us towards the dressing rooms to try on the piles of clothes we had picked out. She shoved me and Joan in to two rooms with some clothes and herself into a different one next to us and finally answered. "Well, last I remember was a portal and then I was standing next to you. I guess you might have hit your head or something, since we did land near the back of the shop." She came out and modeled a sky blue dress that flared out above her knees and was square shaped at the neck. Two thin straps held it on to her shoulders.

I came out with a golden top, which had sleeves down to my mid forearm, a U-shaped neck, and with white shorts. "Maybe some of those bubbles had knockout gas in them." I chuckled. However, Daida stared at my strangely.

"What bubbles?" Daida asked, confused.

I stopped for a moment. Joan came out with fire red V-neck, and black skinny jeans. I opened my mouth, and then shut it. I knew I had seen bubbles when we were switching worlds, but Daida had been right there. "Nothing then." I said.

"Is everything going alright, ladies?" A blonde woman approached us, her violet eyes taking in each one of us in a courteous manner. I gasped, because even with a uniform on for the department store, I could have recognized her anywhere.

"Mai Valentine?" I asked, smiling. Perhaps my goof from before would not be to waste if I could actually get to know Mai.

Mai smiled confidently and put her hand on her hip. "The duelist extraordinaire, at your service. I take you've seen my work before?"

Daida spoke up. "What are you doing here working at a department store?" I nodded in agreement. It seemed to be the strangest thing.

Mai shrugged and lost a little of her smile. "It's just a part time gig, just to earn a little money for when I go off to tournaments. It also helps me keep tabs on info in the city." She winked.

My smile just got larger. "Say, would you happen to know where there might be a place I can stay for a while? I'm sort of new in town and I haven't gotten a place to stay here yet." I was hoping that maybe she could give me a clue to where I could maybe get a place rented out._ Just something short term…_I tried to convince myself.

Mai shifted her weight a little, keeping herself in that confident pose. "Well, I have a room for rent that you're more than welcome to." I smiled brightly and nodded, and she pulled out a card from her pocket and wrote down her address. Once handing me the card, she spoke. "Just give me a call the first time you come over, so we can set everything up. By the way, what are your names?"

Joan offered this information. "That's Rhea, I'm Joan, and our friend here is Daida." We glanced to Joan, who smiled at us. She did not know the character of Mai, so she had felt it was finally time to speak up when meeting new characters that Daida and I knew.

Mai nodded to us, and went ahead and started to move to other customers. "Well, if you all need any more help, just give me a holler." With that, she walked away, and I started to jump up and down with excitement.

I was incredibly happy. Here I was, going to live with Mai. Now I could actually have a base away from the Mutou household and would not be so terrified to speak or run around the house. "Well, good! Now Joan has a place to stay, and I have Mai's place now."

"What about Daida?" Joan asked, looking at the blonde girl. I had forgotten that Daida did not have a place to stay either.

Daida seemed unaffected as she began to go back into the dressing room. "Oh, me?" She questioned us. "I already have a place to stay. Ishizu offered for me to stay with her." She spoke in a matter-of-fact tone and then disappeared behind the door.

My jaw nearly hit the ground. "Daida! When were you planning to tell us this? How do you know Ishizu?" She had met the one person who might have been able to help us most in this situation. I felt a sting of betrayal.

Daida called back out from the other side of the door. "We were going to see her today, so I was going to tell you then that I had met her. But, yeah." She said, coming out with blue graphic shirt with pink on it, with black, tight capris. "I met her when I first got to this world. She said I needed to just enjoy myself and that when I was ready, to return to her." She shrugged a little. "I guess I'm ready if I have you guys with me." She smiled brightly at us.

Joan disappeared back into the dressing room. I felt my heart sink with disappointment in myself. I should have known that if it was important, Daida would have told me. I felt bad that I had not trusted my own friend.

Daida could sense my sadness and gave me a smile. "Hey though." She spoke, touching me on the shoulder. "At least we're back and going to have fun, right?"

I smiled, her comforting words taking their effect on me. "Yeah." I agreed. With that, both of us ducked back into our respective dressing rooms, and began to tackle the piles of clothes we had gotten.

**…**

Once we had three sorted through our piles, needless to say, they had shrunk considerably. My shopping had concluded to a few new sets of unmentionables, the silken pajama set that Daida had snuck in, and my new attire for this world: The golden top and white shorts. I decided to keep the golden sandals, being now very comfy in them.

Daida had bought the two outfits she had decided were best, but wore her blue dress with her new shoes, which were a heeled shoe in the shape of a slip on sandal. She seemed very please and also eager to show off her outfit, having asked us if we thought that Joey would like it.

Joan, who came out with her new apparel of red top and pants, accented it with knee boots that had a little buckle around her ankle. She also seemed to be on edge about someone seeing it, but unlike Daida, was not open about it. However, just in case, she had a large bag full more of clothes, just in case.

We made it out of the department store and I turned and I smiled to them. "Let's go, guys!" I cheered. They smiled and nodded to me, and we took off towards the museum, the three of us wondering what now lay in store for us.

**…**

Kinakao: Wow, this chapter took longer than I expected. I was not expecting to put that scene at the top, but I thought it would be a funny addition.

Rhea: Quit making me flash Yuugi!

Kinakao: But then you would have never gone shopping ^^ I was also hoping to get the museum in as well, but I'll just make that chapter 6.

Daida: Then I guess that means my fight with Joan isn't over yet?

Kinakao: It can be over whenever you want…

Joan: Oh good! *Tackles Daida again*

Kinakao: Oh dear. Please rate and review!


	6. It Was Only A Matter Of Time

Kinakao: Chapter 6 up and rolling! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed!

Daida: Okay…Fight's done. *Grabs Joey*

Joey: Hey! I'm not in this story yet!

Joan: We have over a hundred and fifty hits! Yay!

Kinakao: I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 6: It Was Only a Matter of Time

We walked down the streets of Domino, gathering a few strange looks. It was unusual for teenagers to be out of school at this time of day, but we did not care. Daida took the lead, since she had made her way from the museum to the Kame Game Shop all on her own the first time. "When I first got here," she began to explain to us. "I woke up on the museum's steps. Ishizu found me and told me to pick a new name and have fun here."

Those words echoed in my head. "I wonder if her and Ryou are working together or something." I said, more of a mumble than an out loud statement.

However, Joan managed to hear me and took offense. "I still don't see why you guys don't like him." Her heeled boots clacked against the side walk as she started to get used to them.

I let out a sigh. "It's not that we don't like him…" Daida shot me a glance. It seemed like the blonde thought it was not a good idea to tell her about the evil side of Ryou. "It's just that Ryou said the same thing to me when I first got here."

We stopped in front of the museum. Both Daida and Joan stared at me. I covered my mouth. I had promised Ryou that I was not going to say anything, but I realized that I had just slipped it out. Daida let out a small sound. "Now…I understand what you meant." She had meant when we spoke about Ryou calling me a chosen.

A voice managed to pull the heat off of me. "I'm glad for you three to have come." The smooth voice of Ishizu Ishtar was loud enough to pull our attention to her. She still remained on the stairs and had a faint smile on her lips as she looked upon us. We gathered together and moved up the stairs to meet with her. The smile was intended for Daida. "Good to see you have met up with your friends." Ishizu said, her smile fading when her eyes met with my face.

Daida chuckled. "You knew I would." Daida said in a very matter-of-fact tone. Ishizu adorned a white dress with black stripes on the linings. Upon her head was a head band of gold fabric which hung around her crown and drooped just below her hair line in the front from the weight of a small pendant in the shape of a scarab beetle. Two locks of her hair were spun with gold, contrasting against the dark hair which looked very similar to mine. Between these two locks of hair, the Millennium necklace rested, staring at me. "Guys," Daida turned to us (mainly Joan), "This is Ishizu Ishtar. She runs an exhibit here at the museum. She also found me when I got here."

Joan gave a small bow, at least knowing how to be a bit respectful. I noticed the uneasiness that Ishizu seemed to have around me. "It's nice to meet you, Ishizu." I said, extending my hand. She took it strongly, staring at our hands for a moment, then let go.

Ishizu took a step back and turned from us. "It is nice to meet you too. However, let us get down to business, shall we?" She turned completely from us and led us inside the museum. We nodded to each other and followed her up the stairs, into the large building.

**…**

The domino museum had its walls covered in art work from various time periods and from many different places. We gawked a little as we walked through the main rooms, and down various corridors. Soon, the artifacts were changing from paintings to more pottery like keepsakes, and soon we came to a room with large stone tablets. Daida jumped over and whispered into my ear, "I think this is the place she showed Kaiba his past." I nodded in agreement. I looked to the tablet on the left and saw the ancient battle between the Pharaoh and his greatest enemy. I imaged Kaiba there, receiving the God Card, and I shuttered. I had almost hoped it had not come to pass yet.

Ishizu went to another door that led deeper down into the museum. "Follow me, still." She spoke, and I pulled myself away from the stone tablets. My eyes had remained on Yami, a blush coating my cheeks. I had only seen him once and he never even spoke to me.

We made our way down to what appeared to be the bottom room. The door was heavily locked, chains crossing it and many heavy duty locks and combinations were interlaced in the door's original lock. Ishizu pardoned herself as she unlocked the door, and opened it for us. She held it open, and without any warning, the three of us were shoved in with a brute force from Ishizu's guards and the door closed behind us. We three were knocked to the ground in the darkness.

The room was as black as the velvet darkness I had come to know. I opened my mouth to protest this abuse, when Ishizu's voice came from inside the door, as she was standing right behind us. "I'm sure you three girls know my Millennium Necklace can see into the past and the future." She started, as she walked along the edge of the walls. We could hear her shoes padding softly against the floor. "I foresaw Daida's arrival to this museum a week or so ago, which means that you three are tied into the Millennium items."

As I tried to get up, I felt myself being almost unable to find any bearings. I stood up slowly and put my arms in front of me. "I don't know what you're talking about." I spoke into the darkness. I could hear Daida and Joan rising as well.

Ishizu ignored me. "Long ago, much longer than the days of the Ancient Egyptians, there was once a man who loved a woman." She paused momentarily, and I could hear Joan snort at her. "How original." Ishizu seemed unfazed. "This woman was not ordinary. She was thought to be a divine being. She had four companions, who were also divine in their own natures."

I had finally found a wall. I started to crawl up the side of it while she was talking. Daida cried out, "Ishizu, why are you doing this to us?" I could hear pain in her voice.

Instead of answering her, Ishizu merely continued with her story. "Each of them had their own powers. Fire, water, earth, and air. Each power was bestowed upon the woman's companions. This man loved the woman so much, he spent his life painting the image of his beloved and her friends."

Joan cut in again. "It would just disintegrate over time. It's probably gone by now." She had found a wall too, and was inching her way along it as well. I had inched my way to a part of the wall that had a curtain hung in front of it. I grabbed the curtain and lifted it to see if there was a window to let light in.

Ishizu smiled in the darkness. "Ah, but he had Time on his side. For you see, his beloved could control time and cast a spell on the painting to make it frozen in time." By now, I had pulled back the curtain when Ishizu flipped on the lights. There, in front of my eyes, a large painting clinged to the wall. I stepped back and let out a gasp.

There were four girls lined in a row. A girl with brown hair tied up in a ponytail and bright green eyes smiled out from the far left of the group. She wore a green cloak around her body, her right hand peeking out of the cloak with a pink flower in her hand. She seemed familiar, but I could not place from where. The one next to her adorned a blue robe, had blonde hair falling around her shoulders. Her right hand was out, and had bubbles coming forth from it. Her blue eyes matched those of Daida, who I could swear I heard shaking behind me.

Next to her was a fiery red robe, a girl with short light brown hair and green-blue eyes, who held up her left hand from the robe and displayed a flame in the palm of her hand. If I could have torn my eyes away, I would have wanted to see Joan's expression. She was completely silent. The image was uncanny. The girl at the far right had red hair that flowed around her, and seemed to almost be floating. Her left hand was exposed to show off a miniature tornado conjured into her hand.

Floating above these four girls was another girl. This one had her arms out above the four others, her majestic golden cloak open to reveal her golden dress. It clung to her every curve and strapped itself to her via strings around her shoulders. Her belly button was exposed by a diamond shaped cut out, and a smile lit her face. Long black hair swirled around her, and deep amethyst eyes peered down at me.

It was **me**.

That same appearance I had seen when I had first come into this world that I saw staring up at me from the water, I knew that this was me in this ageless painting.

Joan and Daida had made it over to me, now that the curtain had lifted and the lights were on. The room was empty besides this one painting. It almost looked like it was freshly done. Both of the girls grabbed my shoulders, shaking me slightly. "Rhea…Rhea!" Joan said as she tried to shake me out of my daze.

Ishizu finally spoke up once more. "These girls were like goddesses. They are summoned at a place and time when they are needed most. They visit different time lines and ensure peace." Ishizu walked over to the curtains and pulled them more fully open, to allow the painting to be put almost on a spot light. "However, some recordings say that they have a chosen partner, who can enhance the already incredible powers of these guardians. This chosen is usually in the world where they are needed most."

My lips parted as I finally was able to tear my eyes away from this painting and I placed my hands on the sides of my face. "No…" I said, softly. I was still shaking. My life had been normal, no powers, no anything. I was just a girl who went to school, played a card game, and had fallen for a character in a story. "Are you telling me I have to save the world?" It was the last thing I wanted. I wanted to go home.

Ishizu looked at the three of us. We looked like shocked and scared mice. "I do not know." She said, flatly. "I cannot see your future nor your past, Rhea."

Anger took refuge in my voice. "Why not? You could see Daida when she came here! Why not me?" I wanted to at least have answers. I avoided looking at myself, smiling down at me.

Ishizu stayed calm. She had dealt with people who were confused and wanted to know more. "Because, Rhea. You are the reincarnation of the Spirit of Time. You have the ability to mold and bend it to your will. My necklace can only see those who have a chance to change it. Not a million possibilities."

I sank to my knees. I remembered how many times I had wished to turn back time and never could. It was impossible. Daida allowed me to go down while she stood up. "These…worlds…" She started, getting over her shock rather quickly. "Do you know how we can get to them?"

The Egyptian woman nodded. She placed her hands together. "There is a chant for every one of these Guardians. Once the chant is spoken by that guardian, they teleport to the world that needs them most, or to their original world. None of the other guardians can use another chant."

Daida nodded, seeming to understand. "But, what about Rhea? She has used two different chants." She said, pointing to me. Joan was there, comforting me, but obviously getting over the shock better than I was.

"The Spirit of Time is not a Guardian. She can use the chants as long as she is willing to take the Guardian who's chant she borrows with her into another world. There has been no record of the Time Spirit having a chant." Ishizu looked at me with pity. She moved over to me, passing Daida by. She knelt down and offered me a hand. "It is a bit to absorb." She consoled.

I looked up at her, and removed my hands from my face. Tears had formed in my eyes. "But…" I asked, reaching out to take her hand. "How did Daida get here in the first place? If I used a chant, it was Joan's…" I glanced behind me to the girl who held my shoulders. She seemed on the edge of tears herself. I had dragged her into this without even knowing. The guilt seemed to devour my insides.

Ishizu rose up slowly, picking us both up almost at the same time. "I could not see what was on the other world, but I believe that when you approached water, Daida's Guardian of Water awoke long enough to allow her to chant herself here. I assume, to protect you." She let go of my hand and moved to Daida.

Joan finally snapped. "What if we do not want to be a part of this crap?" She cursed at the woman. She stood in front of me, gripping her fist. She wanted a normal life too and had never even been exposed to this place before.

Calmly, the woman answered. "It is not so much do you want to, as it is a part of destiny. Allow it to sink in." Ishizu looked up at the painting. "You will need to find the last two Guardians. They will be in your world." Ishizu looked to Daida, who seemed ready for the quest.

I waved Joan down, trying to calm her. "How will we be able to tell who they are?" I asked, looking to Joan. She did not seem to buy anything that Ishizu was saying.

After moving to the curtain to close it, Ishizu talked to me with her back turned. "Just touch them. You will be able to find their chant." With that, she moved to the light switch. "Just be careful, Guardians. There is evil here who will want the powers that you have."

The whole list of "evil" that resided in the YuGiOh world raced through my mind. "If we are these 'Guardians,'" I began, looking over my shoulder at her as we finally had our legs solid enough to walk out the door. "Then this is just beginning." With that, the door to the room closed, and I walked away, leaving the idea of a normal life behind me.

…

Joan: So, we finally get the explanations.

Daida: No wonder I like blue!

Joan: Such a short chapter though

Kinakao: It's not my fault that it had to be a two-parter with the last chapter.

Daida: Hey…When can I see Joey?

Kinakao: You'll just have to find out. There is a lot more stuff in store, so don't miss out on the next chapter!

Please Rate and Review!


	7. Brown to Gold

Kinakao: Hello again! Thank you to everyone who has come to this story.

Daida: I took a quiz and found out I'm supposed to marry Joey! Yay!

Joan: You know those things are fake, right?

Daida: Shut up, are not.

Kinakao: Here to do my introduction is Yuugi!

Yuugi: Ahem…Kinakao does not own me, or any of the cast of YuGiOh. She does own those two bickering over there, Rhea, Hope, and the new room in Mai's apartment. Also, I only did this for a cookie…Hey!

Kinakao: Thank you for reading that exactly as was written. *hands him a cookie*

_Please note: This chapter may have a bit of graphic detail. This chapter is rated T. _

Enjoy!

…

Chapter 7: Brown to Gold

The trek out of the museum seemed even longer than when we were coming in. We walked up the stairs to the room with the large stone tablets. I stopped and looked at the left plaque. My eyes lingered on the man carved in the stone, the Millennium Puzzle adorned about his neck. I pulled away from Joan and Daida as I walked slowly over to the tablet and put my head against the glass gently. I was confused. I was happy that it this meant that I was meant to be here, in some weird way. But, my presence told me that this world was going to be put into danger.

Daida came over and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Rhea…" She said softly, and then smiled at the back of my head. "We belong here. I told you so. We were chosen." She seemed incredibly happy with this idea of being a part of this legend.

Joan shook her head. "Why were we chosen? Why was I?" She widened her stance and pointed to herself. "I didn't even care about this world." She huffed.

Daida turned to her angrily. "You have had a chance to be here more than either one of us." She said, her pleasant melodic voice now filling with anger. "Don't you care about these people now?" She clenched her fists. "What about Ryou, huh?"

"Stop it, now!" I shouted. I pulled my head away from the glass and looked up at the stone Yami and whispered. "What do I do…?" I wished Yami was there at the moment. I turned around, keeping my face hidden by black bangs. "I care about these people, Joan. I care about you two as well." I lifted my head and looked at them. Joan had relaxed, and was staring at me quietly. Daida nodded slowly. "I think we just need to allow this to rest, and we should meet up with our friends here."

Joan looked at me with realization that she had hurt me. She nodded slowly, and came over and hugged me. "I told Anzu we might be going to the museum. They might be meeting us here." She said softly, offering the information to me as a consolation. I enjoyed knowing it.

Once we broke apart from our hug, I glanced at my watch. It was just after three. The school members of our friends should have been getting out of class. I looked at Daida. "Let's make ourselves belong." A smile brightened across her face as we marched up the rest of the stairs, and out of the museum, into the bright of day.

**…**

Just after we had made it down the stairs and onto the street, I heard a familiar voice calling to me. "Rhea!" A boy's voice shouted. I looked to my right and saw a group of people headed our way. Each was clad in the Domino High School uniform. Blue pants, sneakers, and blue jackets. A smile spread across my face.

The boy who had called to me had his jacket open, exposing his black shirt and collar to me. "Hey Yuugi!" I smiled, waving. When they had come upon us, I could finally see who the group consisted of. Behind Yuugi was Anzu, her blue and pink school uniform a change from what outfits we had seen her in before, and flanking her sides were Jounouchi Katsuya and Hiroto Honda. Following behind them, was none other than the white haired boy whom I now felt I had to thank for this endeavor. "You guys just get done with class?"

Yuugi nodded. "Yeah, Anzu said something about you guys going to the museum today. So, we figured we should all join you." She paused a moment as he now only saw me and Joan. "Where did Daida go?"

"Hey Yuugi, who's this chick?" We turned to look at the blonde boy who had a very happy Daida hugging him. Suddenly realizing she had made the mistake I had made with characters, she jumped back and away from him.

I gave a laugh. "Sorry, we haven't been introduced yet." I said, before point to Daida. "This is Daida Raizen." At my words, she gave a small curtsey, smiling brightly to her crush. My hand pointed to Joan. "This is Joan…" I said, suddenly realizing that I did not know her last name here.

"Strong." Joan finished for me, allowing the use of her previous name. I smiled and nodded. I turned my attention back to the males. "My name is Rhea Saffron. You guys are…" As if we really needed to know.

Joey grinned and stuck his thumb out towards himself. He decided to do the introductions. "The name's Jounouchi, but you guys are friends of Yuugi, so you can just call me Joey. This here is Honda. He ain't got a better nickname that that." He chuckled before Honda shot him a glare.

Daida was looking at Joey with stars in her eyes. Yuugi looked to me for an explanation and I put my hand to the side of my mouth and whispered. "She's a 'Love at First Sight' kind of gal."

Yuugi looked to me and nodded gently, his eyes focused on mine. "I know how that feels." He widened his eyes as he realized what he said and gave a gentle blush before looking away. I blinked a few times before shaking my head a little. I wondered who he meant, and part of me was scared to know.

Ryou came up from behind and smiled to us. "Hello again." He looked to Joan and gave her a sweet smile. "You are looking very nice today, Joan." His words made her blush as she shyly returned a smile. I noticed the look on Ryou's face. It seemed to be where he was incredibly happy with Joan, but when he glanced at me, had a very torn look on his features.

I ignored it. I would have a chance to talk to him another time. I turned my attention back to Yuugi, who seemed to notice my clothing change as well. "You look good too, Rhea." He blushed shyly, which caused my cheeks to redden. That was right, I had not seen Yuugi since the morning's incident and my face coated itself in a deep red. "We were planning to go back to the game shop to hang out for a while. Did you want to come with us?" He seemed to at least not want to bring up the subject, which made me grateful.

I looked to my friends for their response. Daida gave me a begging look to go so she could be with Joey a little longer. Joan did not seem to mind the fact, as long as she could be around Ryou. I smiled and shrugged my shoulders. "As long as we are all going." This made Yuugi smile and we all gathered in a group and started on our way to the game shop.

**…**

"Those are the Guardians?" A deep voice spoke to himself as he stood across from the museum, clouded in a dark cloak. No one seemed to even take notice to this man, even though he stood at the entrance to a small alleyway. A grin parted his lips as he focused on the three girls. "I will have the power of Time on my side…" He spoke. His eyes lingered on the girl with long dark hair, and a thought of even being able to touch it made him shiver out of need for power. A chuckle escaped his lips as he raised his hand in front of his face. Two of his fingers were pressed together, when suddenly a black shard appeared between them. He turned his palm upward and dropped the shard in to his hand before his body disappeared into shadows.

**…**

Joan, Daida, and I were walking towards the back of the group as we passed various building on our way to the shop. Joan had found out from Ryou that apparently the events of Battle City had occurred, before anyone had even heard of Duelist Kingdom.

Daida leaned over and whispered to both Joan and me. "Man, the timeline in this world compared to how we know it is really screwed up. Think it might be because of Miss Spirit of Time over here?" She was not loud enough for the rest of the group to hear, but the grunt she gave as I elbowed her in the rib was enough to garner some attention.

The group looked back at us, and we stopped for the moment, in front of the splitting of two buildings. "Sorry guys, she just was joking about something. No need to worry." I smiled and waved at them to keep going. As they started to turn away, my heart seemed to stop for a moment. My eyes widened as I suddenly felt a force knock me in to the alley, into a pile of trash filled with glass and metal. My arms and legs became sliced up as the glass sunk in to my skin. My voice was caught in my throat as I pulled my face up and away from the pile, a cut on my cheek oozing with blood.

There, I saw a man clad in a dark cloak, his face hidden from view by a hood. A scream escaped my lips as he looked down on me, and I felt I was going to die. He threw up his hand behind his head, in order to strike me. I shut my eyes tightly as I waited for the impact, but it never came. I opened my eyes slowly, and there was Joan in front of me, brandishing her metal pole. Her pole came to his neck, while his hand landed on her chest. "Joan…" I spoke softly, my eyes filled with tears from fear and the pain.

She did not wait for him to make a second move. She pulled back her pole enough to hold it over my head for a spilt second and then lunge for his chest. It made some contact, but the shadowy figure caught it in time. Joan let go of the pole before aiming a punch. He quickly dropped the pole and jumped back. "I don't have time for this…" He grunted before turning his head to the side. He saw that the whole group was coming now. "Your power will be mine." He looked down at me, and then disappeared.

Joan growled and turned around to face me. She knelt down and tried to assess my wounds. "Joan…Why did you fight him?" I coughed. My side burned where I could feel the rush of blood. There was pain all over my body. I could barely breathe without some place hurting.

Joan looked down at me and shook her head. "Guardian or not, you're my best friend, Rhea. I had to protect you." By now, the whole gang had assembled around me. I looked up and saw Yami hovering behind Joan. It was really the only face I could make out.

I managed to raise my hand seeing blood running from my injuries. Things were growing darker. I glanced down at my wound on my side. My eyes widened as I saw the large piece of glass protruding from my body. My mind felt weak and I felt like I was about to be transported back into my world again. I did not want to go back. "Yami…" I spoke softly. I drifted into the darkness, hearing the voices of my friends calling out to me. Most of all, I heard Yami's voice ring in my ears.

**…**

I was floating again. I could not seem to move, but this time I felt myself being put on my feet on solid ground. I opened my eyes slowly. I was in a white room that seemed to have no doors or windows. It was simple, but did not inspire the sense of being claustrophobic. I looked at my arms and legs and I was completely fine. I suddenly realized that I was alone. "Am I dead?" I asked in to the nothingness.

A small giggle sounded from behind me. I suddenly felt the warmth of another person pressing against my back. As my arms hung down, a hand grasped mine and I felt suddenly very relaxed. "You're not dead." A small, higher pitched voice than my own spoke. It more like a gentle angel's voice. Her back was against mine, and I could feel she was as tall as I was, with her head resting against the back of mine.

I breathed slowly. "Then, where am I?" I asked. I had a million questions, but one at a time was all I could manage out.

She tilted her head a little. "You know about soul rooms, don't you?" She asked. I nodded slowly. "Well, this is yours. It's not decorated at all because you have never been able to access this part of you consciously before now." I could almost hear the smile in her voice.

I looked around. Perhaps these walls would be filled with my personality once I was able to get out of this place. "Who are you?" I asked. My heart was racing. I knew the answer and yet I did not want to know.

She grasped my hand tighter. "I'm you." She moved and spun me around to face her. There, I came face to face with my twin. She was floating a little above the ground, her feet behind her so she would still be at eye level with me. Her golden cloak fluttered about her as she stayed in the air, her clothing revealed to me. She was wearing what appeared to be a golden tank top with a long golden skirt. She looked exactly like me, but her face was a bit rounder, her hair flowed much longer than mine, and she surprisingly had the softer eyes that reminded me of Yuugi.

I took a step back. "You're the Spirit of Time…" I said softly, almost not wanting to believe it.

She gave a small pout. "That's such a formal title. I've had many names through the years, but one name has always been given to me." She lowered herself to land and gave an introductory bow. "You may call me Hope."

"Hope?" I repeated. She smiled and nodded. "So, this really is all true, isn't it?" I said, my eyes down casting themselves. "Evil has come in search of my…your power, hasn't it?"

Hope's smile faded away. "Yes." She answered simply, and opened her mouth to say more. However, suddenly her eyes shot up to the ceiling. I could now hear the voices of my friends calling my name. A smile reappeared on her lips. "We'll talk again, Rhea."

I looked at her. "Wait…!" I started. But, the floor disappeared from beneath my feet. The white of the room began to fade away, as well as Hope's smiling face as she waved goodbye to me. Everything became dark again and the floating sensation returned to me. My eyes shut themselves, allowing the coolness of the darkness to take over.

**…**

As soon as I was able to, I sprung my eyes open. I was lying in a strange room. It was decorated with purples and had various awards on the walls. I found myself to be in a queen sized bed, with a purple canopy over it. I started to sit up to inspect further, but I found myself giving out a yelp of pain as my side burned from where I remembered the glass jutting out. I looked down and saw that there were bandages there. It seemed as if most of my body was covered in bandages, except for the silken pajamas that I had gotten from the store that day which adorned me now. I rested my head back just in time for Yuugi to come rushing in. I turned my head to meet with his eyes.

There he stood at the door, tears in his eyes. Those brilliant amethyst eyes stared at my bandaged body as if I was the reason he was alive. "Rhea…" He finally breathed out as he moved to the side of the bed. His clothes were disheveled and he had bags under his eyes. He leaned in close to me, almost appearing as if he wanted to hug me, but did not want to touch me. "You're awake." He confirmed with a small smile.

I could not take it any longer. I did not care about the pain. I reached up and flung myself up as much as I could to catch the boy in my arms. I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him as tightly as I could. "I was scared I wouldn't see you again, Yuugi." Pain raged through my body, but I did my best to ignore it. He was pulled down on to me, his head placed on my shoulder.

The surprise of my hug caught Yuugi so off-guard, that his darker half managed to take control. The warm arms of Yami wrapped around my body and he held me close for a moment. "I'm so glad to see you are alright, Rhea." His words were spoken softly in to my ears, and I could almost feel the pain ebb away.

For a moment, a part of my heart thought he might go further, but suddenly two girls popped their heads in the door. "Rhea!" They exclaimed in unison. At that point, Yami put me down and allowed me to lie fully on the bed.

Joan and Daida came rushing in, and Joan pushed Yami out from his position next to me. They both tackle-hugged me and I grunted in pain as I winced. "Careful, guys, careful!" the pain seared me from all directions. They immediately got off of me.

I looked at them and smiled, and noticed that Joey and Ryou were now coming in. "So…Where are we, guys?" I asked all of them. They took a moment to look at one another.

The door opened once more and in walked Mai, answering my question. "You're in your new room." She said, and the whole room nodded in agreement. "They found my address in your pocket and found out it was nearby. You're lucky all these people vouched for you when you were out." She winked at me, showing me she was half-kidding.

I was in amazement. They had all been taking care of me while I was injured. I looked to Daida and Joan. "Who patched me up? And how long have I been out?" I asked, and they seemed now to be easier to talk to, since they did not have to explain where I was.

However, instead either one of my two friends, Joey spoke up. "The bandaging up part was Daida, Joan, and Anzu. We guys didn't want to, ya know…" He motioned with his hands in an odd way. I understood. Good to know they were gentlemen.

Daida stepped in with the other information. "You've been out for about six hours. We did have a doctor make a house call. He gave us some prescriptions." She pointed behind her to the bottles of pills on the night stand.

I breathed out. "Six hours…I'm so sorry to make you all worry so much." I looked to Yami, who had now moved to the foot of my bed, and had his hand an inch or so from my foot. I was nearly desperate enough to try and wiggle my foot down, but I knew everyone would notice. "Where are Anzu and Honda?" I asked.

Ryou cut in to answer this one. "Anzu had dance practice, so she left with Honda when she knew you were alright. We ought to phone her now to tell her you are awake." I nodded and sighed. I needed rest, I wanted to have more time with Yami, but I knew what I had to do.

I closed my eyes momentarily. "Guys, will you leave me alone with Daida and Joan again? I want to discuss some stuff with them." I opened my eyes and saw them leave willingly; the only one who lingered this time was Yami, who did not want to leave my side. I gave him a reassuring smile and he returned it, sated for the moment, and closed the door behind him.

I sighed and sat myself up slowly, pulling my legs in to make myself more comfortable. I looked at them very seriously. "Guys." I started. "I know what we have to do." The other two nodded in agreement, knowing exactly what I was going to say.

"Let's find those other Guardians!"

**…**

Daida: Ooo, if I hadn't been poked in the ribs, I would've gotten that guy.

Rhea: Why did no one take me to the hospital?

Kinakao: Because you were just cut up…You got to see a doctor anyways.

Rhea: …You're trying to kill me, aren't you?

Kinakao: Of course not!

Joan: Abort Plan Beta, she's on to us.

Rhea: What?

Daida: *Hugs a Joey plushie*Please rate and review!

_Kinakao: P.S. If you guys didn't get the title of this chapter, it's that originally Mari's name is Mahogany, and then she changes it to Saffron for when she is Rhea. Mahogany is a brownish-red color, while Saffron is a golden-yellow color. FYI!_


	8. Parting Time

Kinakao: Hello again! Sorry for the delay on this chapter.

Hope: It was about time you introduce me.

Kinakao: We also have now over a hundred visitors!

All: Yay!

Hope: Well, let's get this new chapter started then! Kinakao does not own YuGiOh or any of the characters in it. She does own me, Daida, Joan/Tamora, and Mari/Rhea.

Enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 8: Parting Time

Bruised and bandaged, I already knew what we had to do. "We need to go back into our world to find those other Guardians." I spoke with conviction and looked at my two friends intensely.

Daida seemed concerned. "Rhea…You just woke up. I know we need to find the Guardians, but don't you think you need some rest first?" She looked down at my body while her voice echoed with worry.

I blinked a few times before fully inspecting myself. I had not realized how much gauze and bindings they had actually used on me. Aside from the pajama set, I almost looked like a mummy. My arms were wrapped up from my shoulders down to half way onto my palm. My stomach and sides were covered in bandages, and I could feel my legs coated in them as well. One strip of healing tape was stuck to my cheek, covering the wound that marred my face. Apparently, either my lacerations were nothing to sneeze at or they had gone overboard on the dressings. Somehow, I felt it was not the latter. "Ah…" I understood what she meant.

Joan put her hands on the bed roughly. "No, we need to find them as quickly as possible." We both stared at her. She had just said she did not even believe in the Guardians just six hours ago. Then again, I probably had at least a pint more of blood in me six hours ago.

Daida shot her a small glare. "Joan, you're being reckless." She stated icily, before turning to me. "We can all go back when Rhea recovers." She crossed her arms over her chest.

Joan moved to retort, but I quickly interjected. "No, Joan is right, Daida." I said, looking at my hands. "I wasn't injured in our world, so maybe that means my injuries won't carry over." I smiled a little. In a strange way, I was happy I had gotten hurt. At least none of my friends had in my place.

Daida bit her lip. She knew that it was a possibility, but she did not want me to go through such a risk. "Then…" She breathed. "I'll go with you back to our world."

"No." Joan said sternly, her face hardened with seriousness. It shocked both Daida and I to see her like that. Her face softened after a moment, and she pulled her hands up. "I mean, I got to stay here last time with Ryou and the rest of them." She raised her hands up to gesture to us. "You guys need a chance."

I felt uneasy, but I was dying to have a chance to spend days here. I wanted to be able to talk to Yuugi and Yami more, to actually thank Anzu for what she had done for me, and to find out what Ryou knew. "I wish I could…" I said sadly, as I pushed my wants away. "But, I need to go. I'm the only one who can find them, remember?" A smile was fading on my lips.

But Daida would not give in. "Why not all three of us go then?" She pleaded. I could not understand her fear of being without me. At least, I had interpreted her motivations for that conclusion.

Joan clicked her heel against the floor. "We'll need someone to stay while we are gone. To keep us informed when we come back and to make our friends not worry." She seemed to have a difficult time with speaking about our friends, almost straining for the word.

I nodded in agreement. I turned my wrist up to look at my watch. I blinked at it a few moments before I realized the face of it had broken. I gave a small pout. I had worn the watch as long as I could remember. I looked around the room. "What time is it?" I asked openly.

The blonde swiveled around and found a clock resting on the nightstand. "10:40." She reported. I was a little happy. We did not have to take off right away, which meant I could at least say a goodbye to the people here for once.

I sat up with a wince, and both girls panicked. I waved my hand at them. "Don't worry…I'll have to get up and move around sometime..." Slowly I moved my legs out from the bed and allowed them to touch the floor. I exhaled. Applying a small amount of pressure to my feet, I tried my first attempt to stand up. This sent a ripple effect of pain where each one of my cuts tainted my skin. I bit my lip to hold back a whimper of pain. A second attempt, with similar results. Finally, my third try, I managed to stand up on my feet. I breathed in and out slowly as I smiled to my friends as I mentally boasted about my achievement.

Then, my mistake happened. A misstep, if you will. I went to move out towards the door, when as I just tried to move, my side wound shifted in the wrong way and I let out a scream as I lost my balance and started to fall backwards. The two girls moved quickly enough to catch me, just before I had a rough landing on both the bed and the floor.

This scream brought everyone else running back. First to open the door was Yuugi, followed by Ryou, and then Joey, who could not stop in time, and pushed them all down in a dog pile on top of the small duelist. He lifted up his blonde head. "Is everyone alright?" He asked, looking at the females in the room.

The two holding me put me on the bed gently and we girls started to crack up laughing. I nodded my head to Joan and Daida to help up the boys, since my own body could not do the job. Daida helped Joey up, while Joan took Ryou's hand. Yuugi stayed on the floor for a minute, trying to catch his breath. "She's fine, Joey. She just tried to stand up too soon." Daida reassured him. She then offered a hand to Yuugi, but by then, he was already getting on his feet. He politely waved her hand away.

I smiled sadly at the couples I saw. Daida seemed so very happy with Joey, and Joan had not yet let go of Ryou's hand. Daida caught my look and glanced to Yuugi. Her smile faded and she reached out and tugged on Joan's sleeve. "Hey, let's go ahead and make her something to eat before we go home for the night. You boys come too." The blonde pulled on Joey's arm, and Joan, catching on, nodded and pulled on Ryou's hand.

Yuugi turned and was about to follow them out the door before Joan extended her hand out, motioning him to stop. "How about you stay here, Yuugi? I don't want Rhea trying to get up and walk again." She looked at me and winked. "Keep an eye on her, will you?" with that, Joan closed the door between the two Guardians and the boy.

Yuugi faced away from me for a moment, making me wonder what he was doing while facing the door. He took in a deep breath before turning to me and giving me a bright smile. "I'm so glad you're alright, Rhea." He moved over next to my bed, sitting on the small amount of space next to me. I recalled those exact words from Yami. I was starting to become confused. Which one actually cared about my safety?

I closed my eyes for a moment. "Yuugi." I spoke, opening my eyes to meet with his. His smile faded with his name, a small hint of fear in his eyes. I adverted my hues away as I continued. "I know that we haven't know each other long, and that you haven't seen much of me since we first met." I allowed my eyes to wander back to meet his as he nodded slowly. "But, I just wanted to let you know that…" I trailed off. How could I even think about telling him that I had wanted to just be with him for as long as I had? How could I tell him that I wanted to be by his side? I gathered my courage. "That…I am so happy to have met you. I've always dreamed of meeting…someone…like you." I gently closed my eyes. How I still wished I could tell him.

Yuugi was silent for the moment. His smile was completely gone from his face while his sweet, innocent eyes locked on mine. "Rhea…Are you leaving again?" He asked, with his face serious as he seemed to try and not let any emotion appear on his features.

I was surprised he had figured it out. Then again, I had left for four days for no reason. I still did not know how Yuugi felt while I was gone those days. I nodded slowly, allowing him to know at least some of the truth. I reached my hand up and gently touched his cheek. "But, Yuugi." I said, a small smile appearing on my lips. "Just know that even when I go away, I'll always come back to you and your darker half."

The boy widened his eyes at my words. "How do you know about-?" His words were cut off by a knock on the door. He turned his head away from me as we both heard Joan's voice from the other side of the door. "We're coming in with some snacks for Rhea…And, Rhea, it's almost time." The way Joan pressed on the word time made me know exactly what she meant.

A small, sad sigh escaped my lips as I retracted my hand. He turned back to me and grabbed it, making me gasp a little in surprise. "When you get back, please tell me everything." He seemed to be more asking for the information rather than demanding it.

This made me smile. "Once this is over, I'll tell you everything I know." I leaned up once more, once again ignoring the pain in my side. I brought my lips to Yuugi's cheek, allowing them to brush softly against it before I fell back onto the pillow. Yuugi's face turned a bright red and allowed my hand freedom.

The door opened to show Joan and Daida. Daida held the door open while Joan carried a tray of food. It had a sandwich and some pieces of fruit as a side, with a tall glass of milk. "Yuugi," Daida spoke gently, "Joey and Ryou already took off, and Rhea needs her rest. I can walk you home if you like." As the offer was made, Joan placed the food on my lap carefully.

Yuugi shook his head and rose up from his spot, trying to not let them see the blush on his cheeks. "No thank you, Daida. I can walk myself." He turned back to look at me. My cheeks were a rosy red as I gently raised my hand and gave him a small wave. _"Come back safe."_ He mouthed to me. A smile hung on his lips proudly. It was so warm and comforting to me, that it did not matter that the last thing I saw of him was his back out the door.

I had not realized I had spaced out for a moment until Joan tapped me on the head. I blinked and looked up to her and Daida. "Earth to Rhea! You only have ten minutes to scarf down that food we brought you." Joan spoke to me in almost a teasing tone. I looked up to her and nodded silently, biting into the sandwich. Tuna with hard-boiled eggs: My favorite.

I grinned. "Thanks, Joan." She seemed incredibly pleased with herself. Soon, the sandwich had disappeared and half a pear. I drank almost all the milk. I realized that I had not eaten anything the entire day. I exhaled and looked at the clock behind them. It was 11:09. "Well…I guess it's time to say goodbye to this world again." I sighed softly.

Daida nodded and took away the tray from me. "I don't know how much time has passed, nor when you will be getting back. But, when you get back," Daida smiled at me. "You'll get a great surprise." She turned to Joan with a stern look. "No telling, Joan." Her voice was a joking, but deadly sound.

Joan shrugged a little and I was confused, but now had a whole new reason to come back to this world. I glanced at the clock. 11:10. I reached out for Joan's hand, which she took. I smiled. "We'll be back. And we'll have the other guardians too." Right at the stroke of 11:11, I suddenly felt my body warm up. "Narau Saki La Sou Otu!" The words slipped right out of my mouth. Sparks shot out from us as the blue portal above swirled darkly. The sparks floated into the void, but no light returned out. The last thing I remembered was seeing a smirk on Joan's face before everything went black.

**…**

A groan escaped my lips as I started to come to. I was lying face down on soft carpet, which oddly smelled familiar. Not that I smelled carpets that often. I opened my eyes slowly and saw the beige floor against my skin. I slowly rose up and winced as my side hurt me. I widened my eyes, scared that the wounds had followed me to this world. I looked down and found myself in blue jeans and a grey and blue jersey shirt. The same clothes I was wearing when I went to go to Charity's house. I could see a red sliver across the side of it and immediately threw up my shirt. There, my wrappings left in the previous world, I saw my wound oozing blood. It had started to heal, scabs lingering at the sides, but the larger gap ran thick with dark red life energy. The sight of it made me nearly sick here in the real world. I put my hand on it, and looked around. "Help, Tamora!" I called out. But, no one was around. I now knew where I was. I was in Tamora's room. However, it seemed as though she was gone and I had been left alone. I pressed harder into my side and winced. "Help…" I muttered.

I heard the small voice in my head mutter something. I could not understand what was said through the throbbing of my temples. Suddenly, under my hand, a golden circle appeared over my wound. The circle was joined by golden symbols surrounding it, and an arrow extended from the center out to the symbols. As the small voice continued to speak, the arrow began to move around the circle in a clock-wise manner. It began to spin faster and faster, and as it did, the wound began to seal itself up, sealing up every part of the laceration and healing it until there was not even a shadow of a scar.

I breathed slowly as I took my hand away from my wound. My hand was coated in my blood, but the pain from my side was now gone. I leaned up and the door suddenly opened in front of me. There stood Tamora, holding two newly ironed school uniforms. In this world, she had long red-tinted hair, usually kept up in a high ponytail. Her eyes were dark like mine, which now held a look of shock. I looked at her with a scared expression, and she dropped everything from her hands.

"Mari!" She exclaimed, rushing over to me and kneeling down next to me. She grabbed my blooded hand then looked to my side, since my shirt was still pulled up. There was a handprint of blood, but she found the same discovery I just had. "You're not hurt anymore." She commented, bewildered.

I coughed a little as I rose up further, finally making it to my knees. "I was when I got here…I don't know what happened." I partially lied. I knew Hope had some hand in my healing, but I would discuss it with the Spirit when Tamora was not around.

Tamora helped me further up and held on to me as she walked me to the bathroom, stopping to pick up one of the uniforms that she had dropped. "Here, go ahead and shower off. We have school in thirty minutes." She hung the uniform on the inside of the door, and closed it behind her.

I pulled off my clothes and dumped them in a hamper that resided in the bathroom. I now understood why no one had come when I was calling for help. Tamora's parents worked constantly and were hardly around. They usually left well before five in the morning for their jobs. I had stayed over many times to keep the red head company. The warm water felt amazing to me, but part of me felt like I was washing away the world I had just come from. As the blood swirled down the drain, I inspected my body. The rest of my cuts were practically gone.

I threw on the uniform and pulled up my socks. The clothes were a little larger than my own uniform, but I was glad to borrow from Tamora rather than from Charity. Her uniforms would have been a tight fit for me. The uniform, a white sailor shirt with a pocket on the chest. The skirt a dark blue, to match the socks, and black and white saddle shoes. A blue bow adorned on the front of the shirt. I brushed out my two-toned hair: Black on the top with red on the underneath. I remembered how long I had wanted to have my hair this color, now I yearned to have my straight black hair from the world I missed.

I had come out of that shower with new determination. I rushed through the house, finding my way out the door. Tamora followed close behind me. I looked up at the sunny sky and thought, _Hello world, I won't keep him waiting!_

**…**

Daida: You made another filler chapter?

Kinakao: I didn't mean to! I should be uploading the next chapter in a few hours, a gift to satisfy one of our beloved reviewers.

Rhea: Is it going to be more filler?

Kinakao: No! I promise!

? : You get to meet me!

Joan: Who is that? Drag her out so we can see! *Everyone goes and chases the mysterious figure*

Kinakao: Join us next chapter! Please rate and review!


	9. The Pure Heart

Kinakao: Sorry for another wait guys!

Mari: You promised them a chapter in a few hours!

Kinakao: I had homework…

Daida: That always should come first.

Tamora: Are you kidding me? She needs to be keeping her promises.

Kinakao: Anyways! Here is a totally-not-kidnapped Mokuba to do my intro!

Mokuba: Kinakao does not own YuGiOh or any of its characters, including me. She does own Mari/Rhea, Tamora/Joan, Rayen/Cleo, Daida, and the new room in Ishizu's apartment and the whole school. And Mrs. Tobin, unfortunately. Also! The lovely Apherion owns herself and the character of Deanna. Can I have my donuts now?

Kinakao: Yes, yes. Enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 9: The Pure Heart

As we arrived at the school, the warning bell rang. "Whew…Ten minutes to spare." I breathed. We had run all the way there, even though this morning I had just recovered from a deadly wound without explanation. I looked around and gave a small pout. "Well, I guess the first place is to check our school. Three out of five attend here." I observed.

I looked to Tamora, who merely flipped her red ponytail as a response to my question. "What Guardian should we look for first?" She asked, looking around the courtyard. I knew what was crossing her mind: _You can't just go touch everyone at a certain time._

To me, Tamora seemed off. I tried to ignore it. "Well…We have only Earth and Air left, right?" I asked my rhetorical question. "I guess we need to look for someone down to earth or someone that is an airhead." I knew that Tamora and I had different classes, so I turned to her and smiled. "Why not you ask about anyone who likes air or has those kinds of qualities, and I'll ask about anyone who might be down to earth?"

The red-head gave me a stern look. "What should we tell people if they wonder why we're being nosey?" She crossed her arms over her chest.

I shrugged my shoulders as the bell rang once more. "Tell them we are doing a survey." I started to run to class. "Meet me at lunch! I'll be at the Fountain!" With that, I turned away from her and waved, darting inside the building and disappeared from sight.

**…**

"Someone down to earth?" My classmate Deanna questioned me after I had posed my questions. She knew everyone on campus. We were standing in the hallway between classes. Just as she spoke, someone I had never seen before greeted her, and of course the ever popular red-head replied back with a friendly greeting. "What was this for again?" She asked, turning back to me.

I sighed softly before replying. "It's for a survey I'm doing." I answered her simply. I had explained it in detail only a few minutes before.

Deanna smiled. "Right, right." She nodded, remembering it now. She pointed to herself. "I think I'm pretty down to earth." She grinned. I let out another sigh as I rose up the notebook I was taking for notes in and wrote it down.

I honestly would have thought with her hair color and personality that she would be the Guardian of air. I noted it for later. I didn't want to try and grab this girl any time soon. "Thanks, Deanna. I'll keep in in mind." I gave her a little nod of my head and we parted ways.

I walked further down the hall, going towards my math class, when a sudden glint caught my eye. I stopped and shielded my eye from the light and turned to the source outside the window. The door to the school's greenhouse was open, the keys in the handle of the door shining the sunlight into my face. Soon, a girl with long black hair came out from the greenhouse and started to close the door behind her.

"Deanna!" I called out, racing back down the hall towards the red-head in a dash. I needed her to identify this new person. I was lucky and she had not yet gone into her classroom and I hooked my arm around hers and dragged the popular girl with me back to the window.

She skidded to a stop and huffed at me. "What was that for?" I could hear her silent cursing at me. I pointed to the window, where the girl I had seen was now almost out of sight. Deanna leaned in towards the window and blinked. "What, Rayen Black?" She turned to look at me. A smile grew across my lips.

I rose up my notebook. "Tell me everything you know." I grinned and readied my pen. I just had this feeling that I couldn't seem to explain.

Deanna put her finger to her chin and looked up at the ceiling as she started her recounting of information on the mysterious girl. "Let's see…Her name is Rayen Black, she started late to our school, has the first lunch, but she usually hangs out in the greenhouse. She is the president of the Botany club here at school." She concluded, then looked at me and asked, "Anything else?"

I shook my head. "Nope. Thanks for answering that for me. Sorry about dragging you from your class." I gave a little nod. She dismissed the apology with a wave, giving me her bright smile. Another one of Deanna's friends came up to her and she waved goodbye to me and took off.

I grinned to myself. I couldn't wait to tell Tamora. The bell rang, and I sprinted for my next class, already knowing I was going to be late.

**…**

Lunch could not come soon enough. I sat through my math class, being called upon a couple of times in class. Well, the teacher had meant to call on me, but the wrinkled old, nearly blind math teacher insisted I did not know my own name.

"Miss Mahogy." I looked up and groaned at the teacher, a very proud Mrs. Tobin. "Please go to the board to answer number seven." I lifted myself from my seat to go to the board, correcting her as I went along. "It's 'Mahogany,' Mrs. Tobin."

As I wrote down the answer on the board, Mrs. Tobin spoke up once again. "Good work, Miss Mohangy." I growled silently as I took my seat. I remembered why I hated this class so much. This had been happening ever since I had been in this class. I glanced at the clock. I had just missed an opportunity to go back to the world I wanted.

However, I did hear the soft chit-chattering of two girls behind me. They were talking about Tamora. "Doesn't she seem strange? It's unusual for her to miss school…" The first girl spoke.

I silently listened in. The second girl chimed in like a bell. "Maybe she has a new boyfriend." They both giggled. The thought of Ryou came into my mind. These girls could never even guess how right they were.

**…**

I rushed out after my class to meet up with Tamora at the Fountain. I found her sitting on the edge, her lunch already unpacked. I did not stop my running until I was at her side, where I collided with the other girl in a hug. "I got a lead, I got a lead, I got a lead, I got a lead." I was nearly bouncing as I repeated myself happily and the girl in my arms was close to falling over under my sudden attack.

Tamora smiled and looked at me brightly. This was the friend I knew. "You did? Well, who is it?" She asked with curiosity glowing in her dark eyes.

It made me even happier to see the eyes of the Tamora I had known and cared for, rather than the strange person she had been acting as lately. "Her name is Rayen Black. She has our lunch. We need to find her." I nodded seriously and tried to look down at my watch again. I was surprised to find that it had a crack on the digital screen, but it still worked. It was 11:43. "We need to find her fast."

Tamora pushed me off of her so she could repack her lunch. "How did you get your lead, Mari?" The name sounded almost strange to me now. I recounted to her the event I had gone through with the window and Deanna's information. "Well, I've never seen her at this lunch either. So, maybe she hangs out at the greenhouse during her breaks?" Tamora suggested.

I nodded in agreement. "We need to go find her then, come on." I said, picking myself up and offering a hand to Tamora. She gently pushed it away and picked up her lunch, and we ran off towards the school's conservatory. The Fountain's guardian watched us blankly as we left, a small crack in her hand crumbling slightly at our disappearance.

**…**

I was out of breath when we reached the glasshouse towards the back of the school. Tamora seemed completely fine, and a weary look of jealousy was shot to her from me as I leaned forward to place my hands on my knees to rest for the moment. I had been running everywhere, and I realized that my body was still weak from my injuries. It just felt weird in this world. "Well…" I began, "Is she around?"

A voice came from behind us. "What are you doing here?" The voice was stern. Both Tamora and I turned around to look at our interrogator. There stood a girl with long jet black hair that reached about her mid-back. She faced us with stern eyes that made me blink a few times. Her eyes were actually different colors here in the real world. Her right eye was a solid sky blue, while her left hue was a grassy green. It reminded me of looking at an open field, seeing the sky and the ground in the same picture.

Tamora took a glance at me, "Does that answer your question?" She muttered under a hushed voice, which I managed to hear, but decided to ignore.

I stood up straight and smiled to girl. "We just came to do a survey on students. Are you Rayen Black?" I asked gently. I did not want to scare her off right away. Though, I glanced at my watch. It was now 11:59. I was running out of time.

Rayen nodded her head slowly. She seemed to relax more. "Yes, I am. I thought you might be people who were coming to try and steal some of the fruit I'm growing." She went ahead and moved past us towards the hothouse and opened it with her keys. She opened the door wide for us. She smiled at us kindly. "Would you like to come in and see?" She said pleasantly.

I nodded before Tamora could say anything and went inside. The whole house was filled with flowers of almost every color I could have ever imagined. I was in awe. I turned to look at Tamora, who did not seem as impressed. "How long have we had this place at school?" I questioned, feeling that this beauty had to be shared.

Tamora gave a small though as she gently touched the leaf of a nearby plant. "Well, the greenhouse has been here for many years, but I always thought it was unused." She rubbed it gently. It looked like a money plant.

The new girl moved over to a pink flower, where she gently cradled it in her hand. "I helped all these flowers grow when I first came to this school. They are my treasures." Her voice was whimsical as she spoke. She smiled gently to the flower, and the flashback of the ageless painting echoed in my head.

I shook my head to get the picture out of my mind. I had to focus. But, that focus did not last very long. I found a flower that was a pretty gold and blue mixture. I smiled brightly as I gently touched the flower. "They are so beautiful…" I commented, my eyes mesmerized by the petals.

Rayen watched me for a moment, seeming to observe my actions. A smile came across her lips as she spoke gently, "You have a pure heart." Her dual-colored eyes softened as they looked upon me, the pink flower she tended to seemed to perk up on its own. Rayen turned to it and seemed to be almost having a mental conversation with the plant.

I finally pulled myself away from the flowers and glanced at my clock. With a shock, I realized I only had ten minutes left to find out if she was the Guardian. I had to decide between lying to her, and seeming completely crazy. "Rayen," I started to get her attention. "My name is Mari Mahogany. This is Tamora Strong. We'd like to be friends with you." I said simply.

Rayen looked up at me from the plant and smiled, nodding. "You seem to have a good sense about you and you are pure of heart." She glanced to Tamora, a stern look crossing her face. "I will be friends with you." She agreed as she looked up at me.

Now, it was time for the crazy. "Rayen, I believe that our meeting is more than just a coincidence, but is indeed fate." God, I would have run away already from someone talking like this to me, but Rayen just silently listened to me, and I could feel my cheeks turning red from embarrassment.

The silent girl smiled at me quietly. "Yes, I do agree. I have never met someone as virtuous as you." She believed me and complemented me in a short amount of time. I could barely believe myself. She kept her eyes on me, and I started to try and see how much more I could get.

"If I can prove this by touching you at twelve twenty-one, will you let me?" I asked placing a hand behind my head. I knew I must have sounded crazy to the older girl.

However, she gave me a nod of approval. She offered me her hand. "Will this suffice?" She asked of me, her eyes wandering to Tamora, as if she was keeping an eye on her. I glanced down at my watch. It was just now 12:20. I nodded and took her hand before turning to Tamora. "Just follow." I mouthed to her. I turned back to Rayen and took in a breath. I squeezed her hand and vaguely wondered what she meant by my pureness. My watch flipped to the next minute: 12:21.

It took less than a second for me to feel the buzz of power surging through me, stemming from my fingers. The look on Rayen's face told me she could feel it too. "Eitcha Krien Namaeo Zeme Ika!" The chant flowed out of me as the blue portal appeared above the two of us. Her body language seemed to have fear, but her eyes seemed strong, almost as if she knew what was happening. Pieces of dirt pulled up from the ground and went through the portal. The last thing I saw was the beautiful pink flower, wishing us luck on our journey.

**…**

I awoke in an unfamiliar bed. It was a white room with many different ancient Egyptian artifacts that adorned the walls and the shelves. I lifted my hands up to look at them and discovered my broken golden watch. I immediately placed my hands to my face, and sat up with sudden energy as I began searching for a mirror. In the vanity across from the bed, I saw the reflection I yearned for. Those amethyst eyes stared at me with a smile growing on the lips of the girl across from me. She wore bandages across her body and was still in her pajamas as well.

I suddenly realized that yet again, I was alone. I pushed myself out of bed, noticing that my side wound was also healed in this world too. "Hope…You have some explaining to do…" I warned her, but I could not listen now. I had to find Rayen, wherever she was now in this world. I also slowly comprehended that I had no idea where I was. I moved to the wooden door and swung it open.

There in the kitchen, just a few steps away from the room I had been in, sat a very familiar blonde head with an almost unfamiliar face that was smiling. She had brown hair tied up in a high ponytail and her brilliant green eyes only left Daida when she saw the door I came through. Her smile brightened. Daida turned to me as well and threw me a thumb's up. "Good job, Sleeping Beauty." She said, teasingly.

I walked over slowly and blinked a few times. She was here, the fourth Guardian, right in front of me. This Guardian spoke. "I cannot thank you enough, Rhea, for bringing me here." She rose and took my hand.

Now, I was confused. "Whoa…Hold on." I said as I retracted my hand. "I need a few answers please. Do you want one at a time or in a series?" I asked them, and Daida rolled her eyes at me while the girl I had known as Rayen seemed to not understand my confusion.

"Just spit them all out, Rhea." Daida grinned at me. She motioned for the other girl to sit down, which this new person obeyed without question.

I inhaled, taking in a deep breath. With that same breath, I did my best to ask all my questions at once. "Where am I? Is that Rayen? Why is she thanking me? Is she really who we think she is? Does she have a new name? Why does she know my name here already? What does she know about this place? Where is Joan?" I finally ran out of breath and Rayen blinked a few times at me before bursting into a giggle.

I was not amused, but Daida joined her in the laugh. "Well, good to know all that is on the table." Daida said, smiling. She rose up and pulled over a third chair so I could join with them. I sat down as Daida began to explain. "You are at my place, well, more specifically Ishizu's house." Before sitting down again, she went into the kitchen and poured the three of us green tea in Japanese style cups. "That is Rayen Black from our world. However, to answer your other question, she had already changed her name, because she is one of the Guardians we have been looking for." She brought over the tea on a small tray, placing one in front of each of us.

The green eyed girl nodded in thanks for the tea, but decided to pick up the story. "My name here is Cleo Arden. I was thanking you because you finally showed me the way here." She smiled at me. I blinked a few time, still confused. Cleo continued. "Years ago, when I was still young, I used to hear a voice talk to me when I would be around gardens and flowers. It told me to believe in the Earth and that I would find my destiny." However, her smile started to fade. "When I tried to tell people about the girl in the flowers, people thought I was just making her up. So, I just did not tell anyone about her anymore and kept to myself and my flowers."

I was suddenly seeing the young girl having to hide herself away, not knowing how to explain her only friend. That meant that her Guardian had woken up inside of her long before any of the rest. I nodded slowly. She continued on. "After years of having her by my side, she told me to only befriend those who I could feel were right. I made a few friends, but not many last. I had not come across anyone in close proximity since I had come to that school that felt like they had a pure heart until you, Rhea." Her smile returned. "Also, she told me that the 'right' person could awaken me to my full potential."

I blinked a few times. I doubt that was me, since all the Guardians supposedly had a "chosen" to be with. Daida smiled at me and took over the story. "I informed her of where we were. Go figures, she actually knows of the world too. Just doesn't duel. I told her about our names here, so that's how she knows yours." She pointed at me, and then continued. "As for Joan, as far as I saw, you and Cleo were the only ones to come back here." She sipped at her tea.

I sat back in my seat with a mix of emotions. I was happy we had found this new Guardian, but now I was wondering what happened to Joan. I assumed she had not heard me when I asked her to follow. I merely shrugged it off. I looked at Cleo and gave a bright smile. "It's great to have you on the team." I wanted to rest and see Yuugi, but I knew that I could not stay. I rose up from my seat and headed back towards the bedroom.

Daida rose up and watched me as I started to walk away and pull the bandages off of my skin. "Rhea, where are you going?" She had that tone of worried back in her voice.

I peeled off the tape from my cheek, my face fully healed as I turned back to look at her and smile. "I'm going back for that last Guardian!"

**…**

Kinakao: There we go! Finally, we get our earth Guardian.

Daida: Finally! I was sick of hanging around just that hothead.

Joan: At least I'm not waterlogged.

Rhea: I found her…Can I keep her?

Kinakao: Well, join us next time. I'll try my best to put up more as often as I can! (The next time may not be until tomorrow, Sunday. More homework.) Please Rate and Review!


	10. Warnings And Boys Never Mix

Kinakao: Hello, Hello! Happy October is here!

Mari: You didn't finish your homework…

Kinakao: The story was more important. Plus, I'm getting help tomorrow. So, story tonight!

Daida: Just remember to make everyone happy.

Kinakao: Well, I'm bringing in a new character that I need to explain how his name will be so he can do my disclaimer. Everybody welcome in Duke Devlin, who will be known in this fan fiction as Otogi.

Otogi: *With Sexyback playing in the background* Kinakao does not own YuGiOh or any of the characters or places affiliated with it. She does own all of the Guardians, their chants, Drew, Brian, and Kendra the dog.

_**Please be warned this chapter has some minor reference of adult themes. Please be advised this chapter is rated T. Enjoy!**_

**…**

Chapter 10: Warnings and Boys Never Mix

As I went back towards the bedroom to summon myself back into the world I had come from, Cleo's voice rang to me from the kitchen. "Be careful around Tamora." She warned me in her solid voice. I came to a stop and turned around to stare at her.

Daida was giving her the same look of disbelief that I was. Cleo's eyes glowed softly as she peered up at me with seriousness and I could feel a strange jerking at my heart as I looked at her. I could almost feel as if I was losing a sense of myself. I struggled through it. "Tamora is my friend." I said, raising my hand to my heart in a clenched fist. I needed myself to fully focus.

The water Guardian cut in to cause a ceasefire. "She is also a fellow Guardian." She added to my statement. Her eyes darted between the two of us and Cleo's eyes stopped glowing after one or two blinks. She turned her face away from us to look towards the wall that met at the table. She parted her lips with another warning. "She is not as pure as you."

I pursed my lips and turned from them. "Inform her." I said to Daida with a deadly tone. I almost wondered how Cleo could call me pure when I was human like the rest. I walked back to the bedroom to continue with the stripping of my bandages. I slammed the door behind me, and my good mood lost to the wind.

After a few minutes spent on undoing my wrappings, I slipped on some of the clothes that I had bought from the other day. Black jeans hugged my hips with a long, loose-sleeved golden shirt that dipped in a low V-neck. My long hair fluttered about me as I rose up my hands to clasp together in front of me and bent my head downwards. I had to remember the chant that had changed my life. As I opened my mouth to speak, Daida and Cleo opened the door slowly to peer in to watch my ascent into the real world. "Narau Saki La Sou Otu!"

The portal swirled above me, my body growing warmer as small sparks ignited in the air. As the darkness set in, I could hear Daida call out to me, wishing me luck. I vaguely heard Cleo's words of warning in my ears, but by then, the darkness had consumed me.

**…**

I found myself being shaken by the shoulders and demanded to wake up. My eyes flew open as I tried to find clarity. "Mari…Mari!" The voice was familiar, and when the shaking did not stop, I reached up and roughly grabbed the hands that were equally harsh with my body. Thankfully at my grasp, the shaking stopped.

My eyes found themselves upon a boy in a neatly made blue uniform. Long sleeved jacket and pants, with his white shirt peeking out from the top of his collar. His eyes were a soft hazel as they peered down at me. His bowl-cut brown hair hung down a bit in his face as he looked at me with worry. I blinked a few times before I realized who he was. "Drew…What the hell?" I said, anger tainting my voice.

Another voice interrupted my train of thought. "Drew, did you find her?" Another boy was fast approaching. This one had his uniform much more casual than the boy who awoke me. His jacket was open wide, his white shirt wrinkled and slightly untucked. He wore the same pants, but his black belt was also loosely done. His chocolate eyes were bright as his dirty blonde hair pulled back in an incredibly small ponytail made him almost look like a brunette. He skidded to a stop and found the reason for my anger.

There in front of him was a scene that he did not really ever want to see. I had been lying propped up against the back side of the greenhouse, legs extended out, as if I had slid against the wall to my current position. Drew had taken the liberty to practically climb on top of me, one leg between mine, and roughly shake me awake, causing us to be in an awkward situation. Especially since I was back in my uniform again. I turned to the newcomer and growled out, "Did you tell him to rape me when he found me, Brian?" I raised my knee up threateningly. Drew immediately let go of me.

Brian placed his hand behind his head and shook his head at his friend. "Seriously, dude. That's my cousin." He said, while shooting his friend a disapproving look before a grin crossed his face. "Probably the closest she'll ever get to getting any action though." He chuckled a little at his own joke.

He was lucky I did not have anything to throw at him. "Shut up, dweeb." I spoke as Drew had fully gotten off of me and I was able to stand up. "With the rate you're going, your first is going to be your friend sweaty-hands over here." I crossed my arms over my chest and a smirk had crossed my lips. "What are you doing out here anyways?" I asked as I glanced at my clock. It was just a little after two, meaning they should still be in class.

The bowl-cut brunette had looked at his own hands to see if they were actually sweaty, and as he spoke, he wiped them on his pressed pants. "You were skipping out on class, so the teacher asked us if we could find you." His voice was soft and timid, which made me want to hurt him a little less.

Brian put his hands on his hips and shook his head again. "We got done with the work early, and they thought I might know where you were because I'm your cousin and apparently keeper. I brought him along because he's your stalker." His voice was joking, but it was it almost all true. Brian was my cousin and had been like a brother to me for as long as I could remember. We teased each other most of the time, especially when it came to his best friend Drew. The younger boy had a crush on me since we were kids, but I did not want anything to do with him.

My eyes searched both of them for more answers. "How did you guys even find me back here?" I had never even taken notice of this place before much less visited it. It made me wonder how much Brian was being honest about Drew's stalking of me. It made me worry more for what he might have seen me do when crossing worlds than anything else.

The boys both pointed to the window I had looked out from earlier to see Rayen coming out of greenhouse. I noticed it would have been a perfect vantage point. "We were just looking around the halls when Drew's Mari sense kicked in." Brian said seriously.

Drew looked a little flustered with that statement. "I just…" He stumbled for words. "I just was looking outside in case you were wandering around…" He placed his hands together and started to twiddle his thumbs. A nervous habit of his.

I dusted myself off and looked to the two of them, accepting the answers. Brian came closer and I observed his stature to be a couple of inches above me, whereas Drew, now fully upright, came to my cheek with his height. There were many reasons I did not like Drew. I also did not want anyone touching me like that except for Yuugi or Yami. I nodded gently, now remembering I had to get back to them as soon as possible. "I need to find someone." I said sternly.

Drew perked up at my words. "Since we're all still skipping from class, can we help you find them?" His tone was a little more excited than I would have cared for at the moment. I sent him a glare, signaling him that I was still upset for what he did. However, the major problem I was facing was that I still did not know who exactly I was looking for and most of my options were in class at the moment.

I relaxed myself and sighed. Standing around here was not going to get me to the next Guardian any faster, nor was being around these two clowns. "No, we should just go back to class." I said, hoping maybe I could run into Deanna again and just poke her or something to test my theory about her Guardianship. The two nodded in agreement and we walked back to our classroom.

**…**

The bell rung just in time for the last class of the day when we got back to the building. I was headed to English and the other two to their gym class. "We'll come bug you after school, Mari." Brian promised me and I gave him a small wave goodbye. I was looking forward to going because I knew that Tamora should be in my upcoming class. I pushed out the thoughts of what happened so I could tell her the good news about the Guardians.

As soon as I walked in the door, there I saw Tamora in her usual seat, looking away from the door. I slid into the one next to her and opened my mouth to talk to her, but I soon realized she was already engaged in another conversation with another girl. This girl was one of the ones that had sat behind me in my math class. "Tamora, you skipped Spanish class. Was it to see your boyfriend?" The girl asked, twirling on of her pigtails as she grinned to the red-head.

Tamora leaned back in her desk, putting her hands behind her head like a pillow, and smiled smugly at the girl. "Of course I did. We had plenty of fun too." She raised her eyebrows suggestively and chuckled. The girl squealed with delight as she turned to another friend and began to whisper.

I was completely confused. _She didn't go to class? But she wasn't in the other world either…_ I thought. I reached over and grabbed her arm and looked at her firmly, trying to pull her attention away. "What are you talking about? You didn't follow me back." I spoke in a hushed tone, so the gossiping student would not hear me.

A lethal look came from Tamora as she felt me grab her, but softened it when she realized who it was. She pulled her arm back and out of my grasp with a small tug towards her body. "I couldn't. By the time I tried, it was past the minute mark." She whispered back.

Her excuse made sense to me, but I had to further probe. "So then, where did you go? Why are you lying to people?" I asked with worry. Tamora was one to be forceful and resort to violence in a variety of situations, but had a strict code about attending school and being honest. It seemed like she was breaking both ethics so easily.

Tamora shrugged me off, looking towards the teacher as he began speaking about the topic of the day: Julius Caesar. "I went for a stroll to look for the new Guardian. Isn't that our goal?" Her voice was full of attitude, which I did not like coming from her. She opened her notebook and took out a pen.

I offered more words to her, "But, you could have just stayed here at school and checked out your classes. We've almost found all of them here." My voice was almost pleading to find out the logic of her actions. I was not even thinking about school.

She turned to me violently and her eyes seemed black as night. "Don't tell me what to do. I did what I felt I needed to." Her voice sent shivers up my spine and I silenced myself quickly. She stared at me for a moment more, as if waiting to see if I would say anything else. At the lack of my speech, she turned away from me once more and began to take notes. Cleo's words echoed in my head and I shut my eyes tightly, closing myself to the world for a moment to try and get the thought out of my head.

But I was certain: This was not the Tamora I knew.

**…**

I was silent for the rest of the day, trying not to set off Tamora again. When the final bell rang, I smiled softly at the girl and spoke, "Hey, Brian and Drew are coming to hang out with me after school. You want to come along?" I knew I had to go grab my bike from Charity's house, since I had seemed to teleport all over town when coming back and forth from different worlds.

Tamora turned to me and gave a gentle smile and nod. It seemed as though with her actions not being in question, she was much easier to get along with. "Sure." She said, packing away her notebook and slinging the purple bag on her back. "Just let's make sure we check out people who might be who we're looking for too." She reminded me.

We walked out the door together, discussing the scenes of the play we had covered in class. Things were starting to feel like they used to, before my world had turned upside down. We arrived at my locker when a pair of hands suddenly reached up from behind me and covered my eyes. I gave a small squeak in surprise before realizing that one of the boys was having fun. I chuckled and stood still. "Let's see…Sweaty hands that if they ever touch me again, will be chopped off and fed to Tamora's dog." I said, waiting for the reaction.

Just as I had wanted, the hands flew off of my eyes. I turned around and saw Drew with a sheepish grin on his face. "You wouldn't really do that, would you Mari?" He asked, somewhat scared. Tamora's dog was a lovable Doberman named Kendra that could be the cuddliest dog in the world, or rip off a piece of your flesh if she was in the right mood.

I shot a glance at Tamora, whom had gone without an attack from the boys, which was probably smart on their part. Tamora was generally the same was as her dog and would have hurt them if they had tried. She nodded in amusement to me. "Kendra could use the extra protein." She said, winking at me. This made Drew take a step back.

Brian put his arm on top of Drew's head for rest, allowing him to slouch a little. "So, what are we going to be doing now, huh?" He asked, watching a girl go past us down the hallway with a lecherous smile on his face. I had only seen a glimpse of her, but I was sure it was Deanna.

I rolled my eyes at him. "I need to pick up my bike from Charity's place before Mom wonders what I did with it." I said in a matter-of-fact tone. They did not have to know it was because it had been left there for over a day. I noticed Drew trying to duck out from being an arm rest.

At the mention of Charity, Brian's attention was back on me. He stood up straight and smiled, smoothing back his messy hair as much as he could. "Where is the lovely Charity Braxton and how do you know her?" He asked of me, incredibly intrigued by my new friendship.

I shot my cousin a glare. "Pig." I spat at him, but he simply grinned at me. I tried to think of an excuse as fast as I could. "I met her a few days ago when I was dueling at a game shop." I lied. Tamora gave me a glance and I nodded gently, telling her that was the story I was going to stick with. "She is also sick today." I added, trying to make sure they didn't try and see her.

Brian was not put off in the least. "You have to introduce me, since she might be my new conquest." He wiggled his eyebrows at me. Drew grinned at him and I almost thought I saw Tamora looking for her brass knuckles in her jacket pocket.

"Don't you have any manners?" Tamora scoffed at him, giving up on her search for a way to injure him with a weapon. She was prepared to do so without one.

The boy laughed. "I won't be tied down until I meet the right one!" He exclaimed. I put my hand to my face and shook my head gently. I was almost embarrassed to call him my family. I never thought he would ever meet the "right" one.

Suddenly, Drew's phone began to go off in his pocket. He had a newer cell phone than the rest of us, seeing how he was a member of one of the wealthier families in the school. He pulled it out and answered it while turning away from us. "Hello? …Oh, yes…Mmmhmm…" He spoke into the phone. "…What? But…I was going to…Mari and Brian….Fine." He hung up his phone with a sigh. He turned back and looked up at us with a frown on his lips. "I have to go home right away. My grandmother needs help with something." He shrugged in defeat.

Brian smiled to him. "It's cool, man. We'll see you later, and you know Mari here will be thinking all about you." He winked to the boy, which caused both me and Drew to blush furiously. A smile brightened across Drew's face while I clenched my fist, ready to hit Brian.

"Not even in his dreams." I said through clenched teeth. Somehow, this did not seem to put a damper on the young boy's spirits, as he ran off down the hall, waving to us as he went. I could have sworn I saw a skip in his step. I wondered what Yuugi or Yami would have done had they been around to see the events of the day.

Tamora's voice rang in my ears. "So, are we going to get going or what?" She asked impatiently. I looked around the nearly cleared halls. I let out a sigh. We missed most of the people we could have asked about being the Guardian, which meant I had to spend a whole night here. It seemed to be way too long.

I nodded sadly. "Yeah, let's go." I had hoped finding the Guardian of Air would have been much simpler than this, so I could finally return to a place that was starting to feel like home. We three walked down the halls of our school, and out into the brightness of day.

**…**

Daida: Am I ever coming back to the real world?

Kinakao: Do you really want to leave Joey behind alone with Mai?

Daida: NO. O.O;;;

Kinakao: That's what I thought.

Mari: Why do I always have to be away…T_T

Kinakao: Well, we'll see if you go back in the next chapter! Please Rate and Review! Thank you for reading!


	11. The Not So Calm Breeze

Kinakao: Hello everyone! Welcome to the 11th chapter! I can't believe we've come so far with our beloved readers.

Mari: Yay! Now we just have to find the last Guardian!

Brian: Isn't my sexiness enough?

Mari: Ewwww….You're my cousin…

Brian: I was talking to Daida over there.

Daida: *In a corner with a Joey plushie*

Kinakao: Since she has not done one before, here is Tamora with our disclaimer!

Tamora: Kinakao does not own YuGiOh or any of the characters from the series. She does own all the Guardians, Brian, the town they live in, Mari's bike, everything else not related from the world of YuGiOh.

_**Warning. This chapter does contain some foul language and some interesting themes. This chapter is why this fiction is rated T. Please be advised. **_

Enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 11: The Not-So-Calm Breeze

The three of us walked out of the school a little after four. Tamora and I walked side by side while Brian walked behind us with a small distance between us. He was incredibly relaxed as we headed towards Charity's house, even though it seemed that his new idea of a pursuit was supposedly at our destination. My cousin was revolting in his girl chasing sometimes. However, he was the first to speak up. "How much farther is it?" His voice was a bit of a whine.

I glanced back at him and took a look at my watch. It was only 4:25, and we were still about two miles from the large house that belonged to the Water Guardian. The city we lived in was a large one, but not so large that you could not travel by foot to most places around the school. "Not much farther. Besides, it looks like you'll need the exercise." I playfully jabbed him in the gut with my elbow by putting my elbow behind me and stopping momentarily as he continued to walk straight into it. "You're getting kind of tubby." I laughed as I continued my walk.

The opposite was the true fact. My cousin, despite his flaws, could actually get almost any girl that he wanted because for some reason I could not see, he was highly attractive to most of the girls in the school. However, I highly doubted that he would be able to pull Charity away from her crush. Maybe before any of us knew that it was real, but now there was no going back on her heart was now set.

Tamora seemed to be looking around more than usual, even though we walked down the dead streets of suburban area. I wondered if she was looking for the last Guardian. To be honest, her new obsession seemed rather off for the girl, as well as most of her behavior lately. Brian noticed the same thing and snuck up behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders and neck in a sort of glomp. "Tam-Tam.." He said in a whiney voice, using Tamora's most hated nickname. "Why aren't you having fun with us?" He asked, grinning in her ear.

I was certain that Tamora was going to go nuts on him, but instead she turned her head towards him as they were still walking, and glared. It seemed like she was waiting for something, but when it did not come, she grabbed his arm and through it off of her. "Don't touch me or call me that, Brian Mahogany." She used his full name as a warning. He rose up his hands apologetically, showing her he was just joking. Tamora threw up her fist threateningly to him.

This was more normal, even with the violent tendencies. The three of us had known each other for years, growing up and being best friends through thick or thin. Now, things were so different. Yes, Tamora and I shared our secret, but with Brian and Drew not knowing, it felt so weird. Well, more Brian than Drew, since I could not understand why he still hung out with the smaller boy_. How could I tell them I'm some magical being meant to save time itself? _I thought wearily.

I listened to them go back and forth with insults, a vague reference of calling Tamora an old woman and Brian being shot down with an insult of being an ugly giant. By the end of it, both of them were laughing. I turned to look at them to see the genuine smile on Tamora's face and I remembered why I knew I never wanted to leave this world. It was my world, the one I grew up in, the one that I had grown to love my friends. _"You know you will have to leave it again."_ A small voice in my mind spoke up. I looked around and saw no shadowy figures, and the voice gave a little sigh. "_I cannot materialize in any form in your world."_ Hope said gloomily.

I had to remember that I was the only one who could hear her, and while the other two were distracted, I walked a little further ahead and muttered gently, "Then how did you do that healing on my wound?" I recalled the gaping wound that had disabled me on Tamora's bedroom floor here in the real world. I put my hand there instinctively, feeling the skin healed without a trace of ever being hurt.

The little voice chirped up, _"That was time magic. I can only use it through and on your body."_ I could almost see her eyes brighten up at the ability to finally use her powers. _"I sped up the time of your natural healing on that one spot."_ She spoke excitedly. I could not help but smile a little at her obvious pride in her authority over time. It had saved my life.

Then the thought occurred to me. "Well, can't we just go back in time to make it when we were back at school so we can find the last Guardian?" I asked, my voice still a hushed whisper. If we could only do that, then we could find her, go back to the world I wanted, and not have to worry about the time that had pass—

"_Absolutely not!"_ Hope shouted in my head, cutting my plan short. I was surprised by the sudden outburst, and without even hearing a thought from me as to why, she answered it all the same. _"If you use my magic here to alter the time flow outside of your body, you will not be able to return to this world once you leave it."_ Her voice was full of ancient sadness. _"This goes for all worlds."_ She concluded, and I could imagine her eyes closing on those words.

I stopped for a moment and felt my heart jerk with a jolt of agony. "Hope…Did that happen to you?" I asked softly. I could feel her pain, her heartbreak. I wondered if she could remember all of her past even when trapped inside someone else, unlike Yami who could not even remember his own name.

Before the spirit could answer me, Brian was at my side and trying to get my attention. "Marilando…" He whispered into my ear. I growled at the nickname and I moved to smack him, but he jumped back, avoiding my hand. "I was just trying to see if you realized we had arrived." He said, pointing to a gated house.

There, attached by my U-lock to the gate, was my blue bike. I walked over to it, taking out my keys from my backpack and unlocking the lock and slid it into my bag. I wanted to probe the girl inside my head for more information, but I could not with Tamora and Brian's eyes on me. I pulled my bike away from the gate and Brian decided to give me the same bear-hug he had given to Tamora earlier. "Can I grab some snacks from your place, Mari?" His voice was another whine as he smiled innocently at me, using my name as I liked it.

I lifted my hand to get him off of me and was about to reply back when his touch made my heart pulse with a harsh thud. My eyes widened as I the wrist that had come up to throw him off of me revealed to me through a cracked screen the time: 4:44. My breath was caught in my throat as I turned my head to look back at my cousin. His eyes were wide with shock and a little bit of fear, as he tried to let go of me, but could not seem to. I had not realized I was holding my breath until I opened my mouth to gasp in oxygen, but instead words flowed out of me. "Shene Ma Saou Ku Iska!" I reached up to cover my mouth, but it was too late. The blue portal opened above us and my hair whipped around me as if I was being thrown into a whirlwind. I looked out beyond the portal, Tamora's face in utter shock and I noted possibly hints of anger speckled her features before that familiar darkness lulled me to sleep.

**…**

Sunlight beat against my eyelids and I rolled over to try and ignore the glowing orb's call to me. My shift had me nearly face down in soft grass, which made me smile gently as I could remember the first time I came to the world of YuGiOh, and that I had woken up and was laying on such nice, soft grass like this. At the memory, my eyes shot open and I sat up quickly, looking around. I was in a park, half way under a tree, and I noticed that this tree was not from my world. The people around me all shared the same features as the characters I longed to see. I glanced down at my clothes and smiled brightly. No school uniform. I was wearing my pants and shirt from when I had last been in this world. However, it suddenly hit me. "Where's Brian?" I asked myself aloud, and I stood up to get a better look.

I suddenly heard a crack of a branch above me. I looked directly up and a bright smile met my eyes. There was a girl with long flowing red hair with grey colored eyes who smiled playfully at me as she lay on a branch, clinging to it to support her. "I was wondering when you would wake up." The voice was definitely a higher soprano and bubbly with her giggles. Her eyes narrowed at me as she proceeded to ask. "You are Mari, right?"

My jaw dropped. _No…Fucking…Way…_ I mentally cussed, as I stared at this girl in a tree. It could not be him. That was impossible. I blinked at this girl several times and tried to remember if there was anyone else around us that had been female. I could not remember anyone except for Tamora for the life of me. "A-are you Brian…?" I asked, stuttering a little in my amazement.

Her smile went from cheek to cheek. She tried to stand up to jump down, but the branch cracked again, which sent the girl crashing down to the ground with a scream. I jumped out of the way, afraid to get squashed. She landed with a nice thud right on her rear. She whined in pain as she rubbed her backside gently, wincing a little. "Yeah…It's me." She said, looking at me for support to help her up.

I stood there like a mute for a moment, trying to process this girl. This was an exact duplicate of the Air Guardian in the painting, but it was obviously my very male cousin, Brian, who was operating the wheel of this body. She wore a light green short, yet flowing dress with light blue leggings down to her ankles. Just barely on her feet was a pair of black flats. I finally extended my hand to pick her up and I started to speak as best as I could. "But…Brian…You're a…You're a…"

Before I could finish, Brian cut in with a great big smile and now that she was standing up, she pulled her hand away from me, cupped her hands under her breasts, pushed them upward towards me, and leaned in a little as she said with incredible excitement, "I have boobs now!" She smiled brightly and I groaned. This was definitely Brian. I could feel a headache coming on already.

I shook my head. "I can't believe you're a girl in this world…" I mumbled as I turned to look away, putting a hand over my face with a little bit of my wits gone. If it only was not Brian, I would have loved to have been laughing. Yet, part of me knew this was a serious matter, if not just plain traumatizing for me that would end up costing me lots of money to repair my psyche. "Think up a new name for being here like that." I said, finally sighing and removing my hand from my face. "It's weird for me to call a girl 'Brian.'" I resisted looking down at her chest for verification of his newfound female gender.

The red head perked up and smiled, putting his hand to his cheek. "Done! My name here will be 'Bree.'" She said, nodding at her own approval of her name. I was scared to know how long she had been thinking about this. "I just want to know what your full name is, so we can be cousins here too!" She was too good at being a girl. It scared me.

I let out a soft sigh and reluctantly gave out the name, "Rhea Saffron. " It then hit me. Bree knew we were in a new world without any information. "How…How do you know we're in another world? What do you know about this place?" I asked, my eyes scanning her worriedly. My first thought was that the man who had attacked me might have tried to hurt her too.

Now newly dubbed by her name, Bree looked around and shrugged a little before raising her hand up to begin counting off her reasoning. "One, I'm a girl. Two, I just fell out of a tree and did not wake up, so it's safe to assume I'm not dreaming. Three, everyone looks like they were taken from YuGiOh. Four, the park we are in is the exact same one in Domino city, a.k.a. where YuGiOh is based at. And five, I'd have to be blind and stupid to realize somehow we made it into the world of YuGiOh." She smiled as she elevated her five extended fingers up to me. I nodded and pushed her hand away.

A smile started to form on my lips. It dawned on me that I had family here now too, which made this world a place I never wanted to leave. I lifted my wrist to check the time, but my watch was still broken. A small sigh escaped my lips before I hung my arm around Bree's shoulders and grinned at the girl. "Well, I'll tell you a little story while we go off to meet up with our friends." I winked at her. The other girl smiled, and we walked off towards the Kame Game shop as I started to explain how this whole mess started.

Behind us, a dark shadow watched us from behind the trunk of the tree. Only bright, pure white colored eyes sliced with malice could be seen before the figure disappeared.

**…**

"So wait." Bree said, disbelief in her voice. "You're telling me that Charity Braxton, the loveliest girl at our school, Tamora, the brute that she is, Rayen Black, the mysterious latecomer to our school, and us two were chosen to save the world?" She asked me, her eyes stained with skepticism. We had made it from the park to the front of the Black Clown game shop, which stood just a few blocks away from Yuugi's house.

I nodded, but shot her a sneer. "If you keep talking that way about girls, you're going to be mistaken for a lesbian." I did wonder if for some strange reason that because of the gender flipping that Bree had experienced if she would now start to like guys. I wondered what his type would be and how I could use it for blackmail in the real world.

Bree sent me a mischievous grin and placed a hand on her hip. "Well, I do still like girls. So, I guess I am one here. Besides…" She said as she raised her hand up to run though her long locks and struck a pose. "I think this body is beautiful enough to ensnare any girl I want, straight or not." The confidence she had was overwhelming. It almost reminded me of a certain CEO that lived around here in this world. Either him or the man who played with dice and owned the shop we passed.

Suddenly, I heard my name being called. "Rhea!" I turned and hoped to see a spikey head of hair, but the blonde locks racing towards we was almost as comforting. As she ran for us, I noticed she was being followed by two others: A girl with soft brown hair and another girl with short chopped hair. Smiles brightened on their faces as they saw I had the red head next to me.

Bree leaned closer to me and said calmly, "Are those the other Guardians?"

"Yep." My short reply stated.

"You think they're gonna tackle us?" A hint of fear was now in her voice.

"Probably." I said, bracing myself for the impact.

There, in the middle of the sidewalk, a dog-pile on both Bree and me commenced. Daida managed to hug to the two of us with such force, she had us nearly off balance. It was when Joan and Cleo came in to hug the three of us at the center when we lost our foothold and toppled over. We all laughed while Bree was seeing stars.

As the Earth and Fire Guardians got up off of the rest of us, we all stood up and beamed at each other. "We've got all five now." I said, breathing a sigh of relief. I knew that things would only get harder from here, knowing we had to fight against an evil who wanted to have the power inside me. The power of Hope. But, just to have all my friends around me gave me the courage to know that it was worth it.

Daida's excitement grew as she started to bounce a little. "I have to show you the surprise then!" She exclaimed, grabbing my hand impatiently. "Come on, come on!" She insisted, pulling me along. I looked to the others, seeing Joan and Cleo nodded in approval while Bree looked as confused as I did. I went ahead and started to move along with the Water Guardian, as she suddenly broke into a run. Bree ran after me, as did Cleo, and we headed full speed towards the Kame Game shop.

Joan lingered behind, her eyes locked on one of the shadows near the alley of a building. Nothing could be heard, but she nodded silently, her eyes flashing white for a moment, before they returned to her bluish green hue. She then turned away and ran off after the rest of us.

**…**

Rhea: Dear holy Ra, what did you do, Kinakao?

Bree: You're just jealous because I'm prettier than you.

Kinakao: Well, this wasn't an awkward chapter at all!

Daida: I heard a rumor that Kaiba might be in the next chapter.

Cleo: You weren't supposed to tell!

Kinakao: Don't miss out on the next chapter!


	12. Surprises and Fears

Kinakao: Hello, Hello! Sorry for such the long delay!

Rhea: She ran off to a convention for the weekend and had tests.

Cleo: It was super fun though!

Joan: Didn't she write a chapter before she left?

Kinakao: I did! If you all love** Konnichiwa, Sayonara**, you will love **Konnichiwa, Sayonara: The Secret Chapters**! These are extra chapters to this story. Each chapter has its own rating, but I had to rate it M for later chapters.

Bree: Do you own those characters too?

Daida: Of course she doesn't! Kinakao doesn't own YuGiOh or any of its characters or places, and only owns the Guardians, their chants, and the world they are from.

Kinakao: Please enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 12: Surprises and Fears

The door to the Kame Game shop burst open, allowing in a gaggle of girls led by a blonde holding me captive by the hand. Somehow, I felt if I had seen this group coming from the shop window, I would have pretended that the shop was closed for the day. Instead, Solomon lifted his head from the cards that were displayed on the counter in front of him and smiled kindly at us. In front of the counter, facing away from us, were a group of boys with various hair styles, making their uniformed backs easy to tell who was who in the lineup. With the older man's attention drawn away from their discussion, the four boys turned to see what had stopped their conversation. There, from left to right, were Honda, Joey, Yuugi, and Ryou, and in less than a second recognized us and broke out into smiles. Yuugi's smile seemed to be the brightest. "Rhea!" He said, happily.

It took me a moment to realize what had happened in the course of a few seconds. The spikey haired boy had dashed across the room and had wrapped his arms around me in a tender embrace. His arms looped around me to where my head rested on his shoulder and held me so close I could smell his sweet scent from his neck. I was at a loss for words, my eyes wide as I stared out in front of me in confusion. I could feel the heavy stares from all across the room, causing my cheeks to turn a rosy red. When I finally managed a word out, my voice was shaky. "Y-Yuugi…" I spoke softly into his ear.

Part of me did not care about the stares around us. I had wanted this for as long as I could remember, and I wanted to enjoy it. As I tried to lift my hands to return the loving hug, I realized very quickly that Daida still had a hold of my hand since she had used this bond to drag me here. She used this connection to go ahead and pull me away from the boy. "You two can get a room later." Daida spoke, shooting Yuugi a mixed look of humor and jealousy. I took it that Joey had not been so forward with her yet. "First, Rhea has to see her surprise." She added a nod to give her words more finality.

Yuugi let go of me unwillingly and put his hands behind his back, reminding me of how I was when I first met him. His face had a faint blush coloring his face and he seemed to have become incredibly shy. Daida was about to take me up the stairs, but suddenly Ryou spoke up. "Where is Joan?" His question was filled with anxiety while fear seemed to tangle in his features.

"She's right…" Cleo began, turning behind her to point out the Fire Guardian. However, once she recognized she was not behind us, she began to look amongst the group. All of us stopped to look for the fifth member in the small shop and quickly knew she was not with us. Just as we were about to panic and run back out the door, the entrance opened to reveal Joan walking in calmly. She seemed to be trying to be quiet, until she realized we were staring at her with the same stare everyone had given my awkward situation. "What?" She asked defensively as she closed the door behind her.

I saw out of the corner of my eye Ryou about to move towards Joan, possibly to embrace her like Yuugi had done to me. However, he stopped himself mid-step with a small jerk of his body. I was not sure if it was Ryou who had the self-control or if it was his darker half. Daida continued to lead me up the stairs, and just as we were about to reach the top, we heard Honda call up to us, "Hey! Who's the red-head?" We also heard a short shout of pain, which I could imagine might have happened when Joey punched him. I had a suspicion that Joey sensed his friend's thing for red-heads, and the image of Shizuka popped into my head.

Daida was starting to get annoyed at the fact that everyone seemed to be stopping her from showing me this surprise she had been planning for quite some time. "You'll meet her later!" She called down to them, irritation coloring her voice as she pulled me all the way up the stairs. I expected to go to the guest room, but Daida opened the door to Yuugi's room. "Yuugi! We're borrowing your room! Thanks!" She called down to the boy, grinning as she shuffled the five of us into through the door without waiting for a reply from the room's owner.

Finally when we were inside, my hand was released and I gave a small sigh as I looked at the four of them. It seemed like I could barely get a chance to even talk to Yuugi, much less actually spend time with him. I could understand if the idea of anything blossoming between us was now gone from his mind. I walked over to the unmade bed and sat down. That sweet scent was still lingering on the covers, which made me smile sadly. I noticed that a large bag was resting in the center of Yuugi's room, which Daida moved to it and I decided to finally ask. "So. How long have I been gone?"

As Daida opened the bag, Cleo answered me sweetly. "Two days or so." The Earth Guardian let her eyes wander to the face of the new girl. A confused and skeptical look coated Cleo's face as she inspected her. "Who is this last Guardian?" She leaned in a little further, as if to clarify if she was seeing things or not.

My eyes locked on to the smiling Bree and a grimace covered my features as I was forced to explain. "This is Bree Saffron. At least in this world." I did not want to relinquish any further information, but the situation was taken out of my hands by the red-head.

She moved forward and clasped her hand on Cleo's, taking her by surprise. "I'm Rhea's cousin in both this world and the world we're from." After a firm shake, Bree allowed their hands to drop before she leaned towards the girl and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "But my real name is Brian Mahogany, at your service." A suave smile crossed her lips.

Cleo held up her hand as if it was dirtied by the new girl's touch. "No…wonder your aura is so different." She said softly, placing her hand down and wiping it on her pants. She seemed completely uncomfortable with her presence now.

Daida rose up with a bundle of pink and blue. A disbelieving look crossed her face. "Your male cousin…Is the fifth female Guardian?" I gave her a little shrug accompanied by a nod and Daida looked down at the bundle she had in her arms, to me, to Bree. A serious look crossed her face as she pointed at the door and commanded to the others, "Get the tranny out! She changes last." I found this to be a complete shock at Daida's words, but Joan was more than happy to open the door again, grab the shorter girl and shove her out of the door. "Go make some friends, Bree." Joan said, smiling before she shut the door again.

I shot a glare at Daida. "Wasn't that a little harsh?" I asked, since she was my cousin and I did feel that being shoved out of a group meeting was a little much. "And what do you mean by 'change?'" I cocked an eyebrow as I questioned Daida's words.

Suddenly, a deadly glint came into Daida's eyes as she pulled up on the bundle she was holding to reveal a hanger that held up a white shirt covered by a creamy pink jacket. Under this top ensemble was a blue mini skirt and a blue ribbon that hung from the hanger underneath the clothes. I stared at the clothing for a moment, realizing what it was. A smile broke out on Daida's face. "Surprise!"

I narrowed my eyes at her suspiciously. "You know, it's not cosplay if we are in a world where it is from." I stated, my arms crossing over my chest.

Daida frowned a little. "It's not for cosplay." She said, holding it up as she modeled it on the front of her body. "We're enrolled in Domino High." She smiled brightly as she put the uniform she was holding down on the ground and pulled out another one from the bag. "Solomon helped me get us in the school and I managed to get all these uniforms just in time before you came back." She held up one to me.

I took it and examined it. I rather liked that I did not have to wear a uniform in this world, but the idea tickled me. I rose up from the bed and watched as Daida hand out uniforms to each of the girls in the room. I stripped myself of my shirt and began to change into the uniform. I heard a small voice on the other side of the door call to us. "Can I come back in?" It was Bree's voice.

The unison of "No" was even heard down the stairs. It only took a few moments before I was fully changed into my new school uniform. I brushed out my skirt and gave a small twirl as I put my hand up to my cheek, extending my index and middle finger in a peace sign with a smile. "How do I look?" I asked them, batting my eyes at them.

Cleo and Joan had already changed as well and seemed to sport the look very well. Daida had her hands through the arm holes of her shirt, holding them above her head, as she decided to try and pull it on over her head rather than unbutton the front of the shirt. She waved to us, signaling us to go display our surprise for the boys. I cheerfully nodded as I opened the door to a waiting Bree who looked up at me innocently. "I want to see the surprise…" She said sadly, then peeked inside to see all of us in our uniforms. A smile brightened on her face as she realized what the surprise was and managed to see more than an eyeful. "I want mine! By the way, nice rack…Daida." She said, trying to make sure she got the name right.

I skipped down the stairs, letting Daida take care of the Air Guardian with a flurry of curse words that I could have never expected from the student from our world. I wondered if being around Joey had a bad effect on her mouth. I arrived at the bottom and saw that the boys were once again surrounding the counter, but this time there was a tall brunette that stood next to Yuugi, pretending to be mildly interested in the cards on the table. My stomach twisted itself as I felt a jolt of pain in my heart. _Jealousy?_ I asked myself internally. I shook my head to rid myself of the feeling. "How do I look, Yuugi?" I asked, forcing a smile to not alert anyone of my inner doubt.

Yuugi turned around, followed by the rest of the heads turning to rest their eyes on me. A small blush found itself on the shorter boy's cheeks, trailed by a smile. "You look amazing, Rhea." He seemed happy about my uniform which brought on a much less forced smile on to my features. "You start school with us tomorrow, right?" I could sense small peaks of excitement in his voice that he was trying to keep down.

I tilted my head to the side slightly, when the rest of the girls now followed me down the stairs, all clad in uniforms as well. Bree's was a bit larger than she needed, but I knew Daida had just taken a guess on her size. "That's right, Yuugi." Daida nodded as she came down to my level. "Especially now that we have all of our friends." She looked back at the rest of the Guardians with a grin, even though Bree was giving her a sour look due to the yelling she had received.

Joey jumped in and pumped his fist in the air. "Now we can see you guys all day too!" He was excited, which made the Water Guardian happier at his display. I wondered if his words were directed towards Daida alone or that he liked the new friends. I felt so lost and without answers.

Cleo seemed to sense my discomfort and cleared her throat. "Why don't we go home for the night and rest up for our first day?" She glanced at me and I gave her a gentle nod. I needed to know what had happened in the past few days. I was the only one who was a friend by proxy to our friends of this world, even though I had met them first.

Joan shot a look at Cleo as she seemed suspicious. "You sure?" She asked, wary of the Earth Guardian. Cleo looked at me for a moment before looking to Joan, and my fiery friend realized my confusion. "Yeah…" Joan said, putting her arms behind her head. "We really should get going." Joan began to move out the door, followed by the other Guardians.

I remained at the bottom of the stairs for a moment, my smile having faded into nonexistence. Yuugi noticed my emotional change, and took a few steps towards me. I forced a smile and moved to dash out the door, passing close by Yuugi. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow, Yuugi." I forced cheeriness into my voice.

Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed my hand closest to him, I already having passed him enough to where our backs were facing each other while he held my hand. He lowered his head to cover his eyes, speaking softly to me. "Rhea…Don't forget your promise." He reminded me, squeezing my hand gently.

I nodded gently, feeling reassured that he was still that Yuugi I had watched from afar, dreaming to be with for as long as I knew he existed. "I won't." I assured him, and he released my hand. I followed my friends out the door, keeping the short conversation to myself as they walked me back to Mai's apartment.

**…**

My sleep was dreamless that night, surprising for me in this world. I awoke the next morning to an alarm clock that Mai had left in my room while I was gone. I got up and stretched, feeling only half rested. I walked to the kitchen for breakfast and found on the freezer a note written in flowing script addressed to me. "Dear Rhea," I read it aloud, not hearing Mai home. "Help yourself to the food in the fridge, we'll go shopping for food together soon. Glad you're back, Mai." A smile spread across my face. I was back where I now belonged. I raced back to my room to change into my uniform, ready to start the day.

**…**

I rushed out of the apartment and to the corner where the Guardians said they would meet me. They had a chance to learn the city in a way I still had not. I tried not to think about how much time Daida, Cleo, and Joan had spent here compared to me and Bree. Bree had a better excuse than I did, but I wanted to shove the thought out of my mind. I did not want to be jealous of my friends.

I had been standing there for only a minute or so before I saw the group of girls coming towards me. I raised my hand to wave, a smile creeping on to my lips, when I heard a small whisper behind me. _**"Spirit of Time…"**_ It was a deep and dark voice, and I almost felt like fingers brushing my hair softly. The smile on my face disappeared, and was replaced by fear. I looked around and found myself to be alone.

The moment did not last long, as the group had now arrived to where I was. They saw my expression and became worried. Cleo spoke up, "Rhea is everything alright?" She reached out to touch me. "You look like you have seen a ghost." Her voice was filled with concern.

I flinched back. I did not want anyone to touch me, for fear of opening that portal above me. I shook off my fear. _I must have been hearing things._ I reassured myself mentally before taking a step back from the others and giving them a smile. "I'm fine, guys. Let's get going!" I encouraged, before starting walking down the road, trying to forget all that had happened and start this day off right.

"Hey, Rhea? It's this way." Joan called after me, pointing to the direction behind me. I glanced back, blushed, and lowered my face for my hair to hide the humiliation.

Well, there could have been worse ways to start my first day at Domino High.

**…**

The school bell rang, and the five of us entered the classroom as a line up, walking towards the teacher's desk. We stood from left to right, Cleo, Daida, me, Joan, and Bree. As the teacher introduced us, we each gave a small bow when our name was called. I took a moment to look out into the room of eyes staring at us. There, next to Yuugi was a free seat he had placed his bag on, as if reserving it. Three seats diagonally up from the boy was a set of cold, ice blue hues staring at Bree. I shuddered at the sight of Seto Kaiba. It was strange though, seeing him in his school uniform. I never understood why he even bothered coming to this school when he could afford to attend any school in the world.

A few seats over from the rich student was a boy with black hair that was pulled up into a ponytail, with a single die hanging down from his ear. His green eyes were scanning over the five of us and I knew already it was none other than the dungeon dice monsters creator Ryuji Otogi. There were other familiar faces in the class: Joey sat two seats from Yuugi, Honda was next to him, and Anzu was one seat away from Seto, an empty desk separating them. Ryou sat quietly in the back, smiling at Joan. "Treat them nicely." The teacher asked of his students. The class in unison gave us a warm greeting as the teacher gave us slips of paper that had our desk numbers on them.

I glanced down at my number. It was a bolded seventeen. I walked over towards Yuugi and saw at the side corner of his desk a sixteen bolded on the wood. He smiled at me and took the bag off the reserved chair, and I sat down, tucking my miniskirt. I looked to my right and saw Daida take up the seat next to me, a bolded eighteen on that desk, as she closed up the gap to Joey. She gave me an incredibly happy smile and lifted her hand to give me a high five. After reciprocating, I observed where the rest of my friends had taken roost. I saw Joan and Bree exchange papers without the teacher's notice, and Joan took off towards the back to roost next to Ryou. Cleo seemed slightly uncomfortable in the once vacant seat next to Otogi. In a complete contrast, Bree seemed very happy between Anzu and Seto. A small part of me began to fear for that situation.

I relaxed in my seat and glanced at Yuugi, whom I caught staring at me. I smiled and put my hand on my desk, restraining it from reaching across the fissure between the desks to touch him. It then hit me: I could spend as much time as I wanted here, getting to know Yuugi.

It was this thought that both elated me and condemned me.

**…**

Daida: Yay! We get to go to school!

Joan: Bookworm.

Kinakao: Just so you know, I will not be able to update on a daily basis like I once was able to. But, I will update when I can. The more reviews I get, it does encourage me to write more. So! Please Rate and Review!


	13. Awakening

Kinakao: Welcome to lucky chapter 13!

Rhea: I don't think it will be so lucky for me…

Kinakao: Shhh…You'll be alright.

Daida: Yay! Another chapter up!

Ryou: Has anyone seen Joan? Oh, by the way, Kinakao doesn't own YuGiOh or any of the characters, cards, or places in it. She does own all of the Guardians and King Creepy.

Bree: That cloak dude? Ewwww…

Hope you enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 13: Awakening

"I attack with my Gemini Elf." I said, placing my hand on the trading card and sliding it back and forth gently to simulate an attack from the card towards an attack mode Axe Raider. The blonde hung his head in defeat before I even spoke. "I win, Joey." There was some triumph in my voice.

We sat at my desk, I in my own chair and Joey across from me in the chair that belonged to the desk in front of me. We had set up a duel on the table and this had been my third duel today, but only my second win. Joey leaned back in his chair, ran his fingers through his hair, and sighed. "Well, if you almost beat Yuugi, I should have known I had no chance against you." He glanced over to the victor to my only loss of the day.

Yuugi gave his friend a smile and I recalled our duel. I had gotten him down to a hundred life points, but he managed to pull out his catapult turtle at the very last moment to win him the duel by taking down my Mikazukinoyaiba with ease. They all found it to be a surprise that I had a dark deck. I had not shown to them that I also had the Dark Magician and the Dark Magician Girl in my deck. I knew that it was too much information about my world, seeing how it was not too difficult to get your hands on those cards in my world. "Joey, you're getting better. I'm sure you can beat me pretty soon." His words were encouraging.

Daida and I restrained ourselves from making comments. Daida was sitting in her desk next to me while Yuugi stood next to Joey, looking over his cards. We were currently on break, and the two duelists had wanted to test my skills. I saw that Bree had moved over towards Honda's desk and was chatting with a bunch of boys, her expression a flirty, giggly smile. I rolled my eyes, allowing them to move over to Cleo and Duke. He seemed to be trying to put the moves on her, but she was focused on a spot on her desk, mumbling something to him. She seemed to be immune to him, which comforted me, knowing that Cleo could handle herself. It was then that my eyes moved over to Ryou, who was sitting alone. Joan had left the room for the moment, and I bit my lip softly. I knew I had to start somewhere. "Excuse me, guys." I said distantly, standing up, not even looking down at my desk to pick up my deck.

The group I was with was confused, but I could hear Daida say that she would be next to duel Joey as I walked towards the white haired boy. He noticed me coming and seemed to be a little torn for a moment before offering me a smile. I made it to his desk and gently placed a hand on it. "Ryou…May I talk to you outside?" I asked softly, my voice as even as I could make it.

Ryou gave a small, yet forced nod as he seemed to become more serious at my request. He stood up from his chair and I turned to walk with him out of the room. I heard a few of the girls in class making chattering noises at the fact that Ryou and I were leaving together. I was pretty sure I could feel the stares of three girls and one boy burning holes into the back of my head before I closed the door.

**…**

Ryou led me behind a building towards the edge of school that looked like an alley, since the street was blocked off by a tall cinder-block wall. I waited to make sure that we were alone first before diving into my questioning. My amethyst hues locked onto his eyes as I crossed my arms over my chest and let out a slow breath. "Ryou, you know where I am from." I stated, allowing him to nod carefully. I opened my mouth, about to start in on my first question, when he raised his hand to stop my words form coming forth.

His look was incredibly serious. "Rhea, I know you have many questions for me, but let me show you something first that may explain a few things." His tone was a little anxious, and I agreed to let him speak with a silent nod. "Close your eyes." His tone was polite. I stared at him with distrust for a moment before I obeyed his wish_. I just need answers_. I thought to myself. I stood there, my arms hanging at my sides, and felt like an idiot for standing there for what felt to be about five minutes. After those seconds crawled by, I was afraid he had left me here alone; a thought that irritated me.

I parted my lips, keeping my eyes closed, and I spoke out. A little of my annoyance spilled into his name. "Ryou?" As if to keep the name from escaping into the air, I felt soft lips swiftly press against mine as a hand wrapped around my waist to pull me close. The taste of strawberries filled my senses just before I snapped my eyes open to see the white haired teen attached to me. Rage and tears filled my eyes, my arms lifting up to shove him away from me. This caused the kiss to end quickly, a look of shock overcoming his features. After I had made some room between us, my right hand swung up and slapped his cheek so hard that my own hand hurt from the impact. "What the hell are you doing?" I yelled at him, balling up my fist and rubbing it against my lips to rid myself of the remaining specks of strawberry taste left there.

With his hand cupping his injury, his expression held nothing but surprise. "You didn't awaken…" He remarked, stunned by both my lack of 'awakening' and the strength I had found to hurt him.

I was still upset and angry, feeling that my lips had been tainted now. I had only ever wanted to kiss Yuugi, which was now ruined thanks to this pervert. My heart ached to know my first kiss in this world would not be shared with the person I wanted most. "What do you mean?" I demanded of him, my fist still tight, in case he should decide to come close to me again.

Ryou dropped his eyes to the ground. "A few weeks ago, I got a book that spoke about Guardians and their Chosen." He began slowly as he reached inside his jacket and pulled out the Millennium Ring to show in plain view for me to see. "I realized that I was one of the Chosen to the Guardians. It was written in this book that a Chosen is meant to be with that Guardian not through one life, but many." He allowed the ring to hang openly on his chest as he continued. "I am the Chosen to the Fire Guardian, which since you came from my summoning, is you." He looked back up at me with that same look he had been giving me since I had come back with all of the Guardians: A mix of sadness and joy.

Anger still raged in my heart, and I just wanted to just scream at him. Instead, I took deep, long breathes to calm myself. "What about Joan, huh?" I asked, my voice still demanding and accusing. At the mention of her name, his eyes widened and he looked away. "I've seen how you are with her!" My eyes cut at him.

He bit his lip, mulling over how he would phrase things. He sighed and kept his gaze away from me. "I…" He started, and then the floodgate opened wide. "I love her, Rhea. She makes me feel the best in the world and I want to be around her, despite the Spirit in the Ring." He was breathless at the end and he paused to compose himself.

I blinked a few times, stunned at his confession. But I snapped at him, "Then why did you…" I didn't want to say the words, but we both knew what had happened. "Kiss me?" I asked, the two words spitting out like venom off my tongue.

Ryou fell to his knee, in a submissive stance to me. "I am your Chosen. I am meant to be with you and awaken your powers. The kiss was supposed to awaken you, but since it didn't, I can only assume it was because my heart is wavering." He placed his hand over his heart and closed his eyes. "So I will be with you and do my best to forget about her." His voice was sad, since he had already conceded to his fate.

It suddenly all made sense. He had tried to summon Joan here to this world and instead got me. I wanted to tell him about his mistake, but his position left him wide open for more questioning. "How did you get that note to me?" I asked softly, allowing my hate at him to ebb away as I squatted down to his level. "I thought that only Guardians could cross the barriers of the worlds." My voice was sweeter now, yet still forceful enough to get his attention.

He wiped his unmarked cheek to keep it from being stained by the salty tear that had run down it. He looked up at me to answer my question. "There is a chant in the book I had that could be used by a chosen to send messages to his Guardian." He paused to sniff gently, trying to compose himself in front of me. "I believe it was made just in case the Guardians could not come back to world." He still seemed heartbroken at the fact that he truly believed he would have to give up the one he loved to be with me.

I still felt angry at him, but my heart ached for him as well. I could not hold back the truth from him anymore. "I have good news, Ryou." I said, touching his shoulder while a small smile crawled onto my lips. "I am not the Fire Guardian." I spoke with definition and I stood, grinning down at him. "Joan is." My hands placed themselves on my hips as I almost seemed triumphant in the news.

The boy was silent for a moment, and then he lifted his head up to look at me, the brightness of joy lit up his face. His cheer was almost blinding, and he was so happy that he looked like he was about to burst. He stood up and grabbed me in a hug. "Really? Oh thank you for telling me, Rhea!" He exclaimed. "I can be with her now with no worries." He seemed positively elated and I realized in the time I had been gone in search for the other Guardians, he had been falling so deeply for her.

I felt awkward hugging him now, since we had just had that moment earlier, but I lifted my arms to gently give him a hug and patted his back with the tips of my hands. "I'm so glad you can be with who you want." My voice tried to sound happy, even though all I could see was Yuugi's face in my head.

Slowly, Ryou's grip became tighter around me. "So…If you are not the Fire Guardian…" He spoke slowly, his voice becoming deeper as he buried his head into my neck. His hot breath made me squirm a little, but by now, I was in a vice grip. "Then which Guardian are you?" His voice had completely changed, and I knew he had turned into Bakura right in front of me.

I let out a gasp of air as I tried to pick up my knee to hit him, but no matter what I did, he would not let go. "Why should I tell you?" I growled at him, trying to be strong.

His hand that was snaked around my waist loosened as his other hand kept me locked to him as he pushed me to the wall with his body. He lifted his head and stared at me face on, Bakura in full view as he ran his fingers around my stomach, sliding them up roughly around my chest. "Because…" He smirked at me, his nails digging in for a brief moment which made me let out a short scream. Before anyone heard me, this same hand was swiftly moved to wrap his fingers tightly around my throat. "If you don't, there will be only three Guardians left." He threatened.

Breathing became a difficult task as I gasped for air, his grip becoming tighter. I had to think quickly, since I already was feeling lightheaded. "I…" I managed, still struggling against him. "..Won't…" I fought, and I took what energy I had to spit at him.

The spittle landed on his cheek, which made him release me from his grip around me, while his grip around my neck became tighter. "You little…" He swore at me. He wiped the spot away from his cheek with the back of his free hand and lifted me off the ground by sliding me up the wall with his hold around my neck. "You will tell me." His was voice harsh and scary as he demanded by obedience.

I found myself unable to breathe anymore and the scene was slowly going black. I wondered what time it was, seeing that to be my only escape, but without it, I slowly fell into a lulling sleep, thinking these were my last moments.

**…**

My body hung in his hand limp, my head hanging down as I did not seem to be breathing. Bakura still held me up, a scowl across his features. "Now I'll never know…" He muttered, loosening his grip slightly to see if I was truly dead. As I hung there, my lips parted, a soft whisper escaping my lips so low in tone, even Bakura could not make out what my body was saying on its own.

It was only when a vibration went through my body that Bakura sensed something was wrong. My eyes snapped open, golden hues replacing my normally amethyst eyes. These dangerous eyes stared down at Bakura and an echoing voice spoke out from my lips. _"Do not touch me, Tainted Spirit…" _Hope's voice commanded and a surge of power through my body caused Bakura to drop me in pain.

As he fell back, he was knocked back into his soul room, while Ryou took control once more. The boy groaned as he realized he was back in control. He looked up at my body and saw that I was slightly glowing and floating where I had just been pinned to the wall, my eyes entirely covered by a golden glow. He gasped, and my face lost its fierce expression as a light went out from my eyes and my body fell to the ground, crumpling into a ball of non-glowing school girl. He scrambled on the ground, trying to get over to me. "Rhea!" He called to me, making it over and patting my cheek lightly.

I let out a soft groan as I opened my eyes, the amethyst color returned to them. I looked up at Ryou and tilted my head slowly to the side, taking in a breath before speaking. "Ryou…What happened to Bakura?" I winced as I felt the bruises on my neck from where his fingers had once been sent small jolts of pain when I spoke.

Ryou looked at me, very upset about what had happened. "Rhea, I'm so sorry I lost control of the Spirit. It won't happen again." He apologized to me, his voice begging as he continued on. "Please don't tell Joan about this." He started to help me up on these words.

I just managed a glare at him. His darker half had just tried to kill me, and he was worried about Joan's approval. "Yeah…" I said absently. "I won't tell her." I spoke with a distant tone as I got to my feet. I wondered if there was a connection between Bakura and the man who had attacked me before. I gingerly lifted the collar of my shirt a little to hide the marks along my neck so I could resume class like nothing had happened. "Come on, Ryou…They'll be waiting for us." I coughed softly, turning away from the white haired boy.

**…**

When a small golden light ascended to the sky, the four Guardians felt their heart pulse in unison. In a spilt second, each one's eyes flashed a different color: Daida's flashed a brilliant ice blue, Cleo's lit up green, Bree's eyes flashed a yellowish color, and Joan's flashed red before her irises turned white. Once they had stopped their glowing, they each stopped what they were doing and looked at each other, their ghostly other halves standing beside them. The Guardians had awakened.

Across the city, in a tower above the clouds which no one seemed to be able to notice, the golden glow made its presence known to a man clad in a dark robe. A smirk cut across his face as he began to laugh. "It has begun!" He shouted in the empty space, his chuckles seeming to echo down upon the whole city, and the sky darkened slightly, the looks of rain about to come down upon Domino.

**…**

Ryou: Rhea! I'm so sorry!

Rhea: Stay away from me!

Yuugi: …I can't leave you alone, can I?

Bree: Rhea and Ryou sitting in a tree…

Joan and Rhea: Hell NO!

Kinakao: Please tune in for the next chapter!


	14. The Reflection

Kinakao: Hello! Sorry for being a little late with this chapter!

Joan: Really. You need to write more for these people.

Rhea: But if she doesn't write more, that means I get hurt less, yes?

Bree: *with duct tape in hand* Nope. I get to just torture you more!

Kinakao: Thank you guys for being so patient with me.

Marik: Why do I have to? Oh fine… Kinakao does not own YuGiOh or any of its characters or places. She does own those random girls that are the Guardians or something, and their chants, and anything that isn't YuGiOh.

Daida: See? He's not so bad!

Enjoy!

**...**

Chapter 14: The Reflection

When I came back in to the room, I found four pairs of eyes staring at me. These eyes held a mixture of fear, confusion, and a splash of relief as I walked in to the room with Ryou in tow. I swallowed harshly before lifting the collar of my shirt a little to ensure the covering of my newly formed bruises. Joan was now back at her seat and I did my best to avoid her gaze. Even though Ryou and I had cleared up everything between us, keeping the secret of the kiss we had shared laid a heavy burden on my heart. It felt awkward thinking about it, almost as awkward as sitting next to Yuugi after these events. He seemed cheerful as he talked over my desk to Daida, but I did take a notice of the two of them alternating glances at me. I clenched my fist and walked forward, parting ways with the now-nearly-skipping Ryou who seemed incredibly happy to be returning to Joan's side. As I sat down at my desk, Yuugi took his attention away from Daida and handed me my deck. "So, everything alright, Rhea?" He asked, trying to start a conversation with me.

I took my deck silently, trying to forget about the pressure that had been just on my lips and looked up into his soft amethyst eyes. The overwhelming feeling to just break down, cry, and spill out everything about myself and the Guardians right then and there almost took me. But, with all the strength I could muster, I held myself together and forced a smile. "Yeah." I breathed out, "Of course, Yuugi." I hated lying to him, and the small frown he gave me alerted me that he knew something had happened. I was lucky though, and he let me off the hook with a nod and started on the work the teacher had put on the board.

My attention turned to the teacher as well. I had managed to write down only two problems when Hope appeared next to me silently. "_Rhea, it's time_." She spoke softly, even though I knew I was the only one who was able to hear her.

I rolled my eyes up towards her, keeping my facial expression even so people would not think I was giving the ceiling weird looks. _Time for what?_ I asked, a little confused. She was being too cryptic for my tastes.

Hope looked around the room at my four female friends who were now focusing their attention towards schoolwork. "_For you to learn how to use your powers._" She seemed to be incredibly serious about this. For a moment, I followed her eyes and could see a soft aura radiating off of each of them. Each one had a different color and I figured out what she meant. I shut my eyes and listened to the clock tick by as I wished for that very moment to rid myself of the sinking feeling in my stomach.

**…**

At the end of the school day, I managed to pack my backpack and giving a farewell to Yuugi before I was surrounded by the four Guardians. Before they could begin to question me, I rose my hand up to signal them that we would talk outside the school. They nodded in agreement and we walked down to the front of the school. We almost made it out completely, but Yuugi came up from behind us and called out, "Hey guys!" We turned towards him on cue. "Joey, Anzu, Honda, and I are going downtown to check out some new shops. You all want to come?"

His cheery address to all of us was replied by Cleo. "Not today, Yuugi." Her voice was kind, which seemed to make her decline easier on him. "We need to take care of some stuff. Next time." She smiled as she promised him.

He smiled to her and nodded, waving goodbye to our group, and went to go meet with our other friends. I glanced to each one and spoke quickly, "Let's go to the woods. We need to be alone." My hushed voice was only loud enough for them to barely hear, but they approved of the meeting place. I continued to walk out the door, until I collided with a firm chest.

After the wind had returned to my lungs, I looked up at the wall that had stopped me. I found Seto Kaiba's glaring eyes meeting with mine. If I did not feel dirty kissing Ryou, I sure felt filthy now. I backed away from him as quickly as I could and his glanced moved over to Bree. "Saffron, I'm assuming you got my message." His voice was stern and his features were unrelenting.

Bree grinned at him and held up a slip of paper between her fingers. "Oh, you mean this?" She spoke in a teasing tone. All she received from Seto was a nod. She smiled brightly at him before she placed the paper into her pocket. "I'll see if I can make it." She brushed past him and the rest of us followed silently, and I knew I was at least holding back making a face at him.

Seto clenched his jaw before turning around to face Bree's back as she walked away from him. "You better show if you know what is good for you." He threatened.

She chuckled and shrugged a little. "You keep acting like that, Kaiba-boy," She grinned, using the name Pegasus would use for him later on, "and my back is all you'll ever see." She raised her hand to wave to him and we left him where he was standing.

**…**

"What was that about?" Joan asked Bree once we had reached the edge of the woods. The travel from school to other places now seemed to be quicker as we learned the areas better.

Bree flipped her red hair and smiled sweetly, "Oh, he asked me out on a date." She replied, almost happily.

My jaw dropped. Daida smirked and laughed. "I wonder if he's into yaoi then." She said, her eyes moving to the sky in a mischievous manner. I shuddered at the thought.

Bree shot her a glare. "Who didn't inform you, B-cup?" She growled at Daida, who turned red. "I'm straight…Err…" Her expression suddenly lightened as she thought about her words. "I guess I like girls still. Seto is so far from that." She nodded to herself, her statement making some sense.

I shook my head as Daida began to lurch towards the redhead in anger. I stood between them, seeing Daida ready to defend her maidenhood honor, and I put my hand up and gave her a stern look. "So then why even tease him like that?" I asked Bree over my shoulder as Daida fumed silently.

Bree grinned and placed a finger on her cheek. "Because he's rich, duh!" All of us gave her a look of pure disgust.

Cleo came to a stop in the clearing, and spun around to the rest of us. "We're here." She reported. I realized that we were standing in the same exact spot that I had woken up when I first arrived to this new world. I could not believe how much my life had changed over the past few days. I knew I never wanted to go back to my old life again. "So, tell us what happened when you were talking with Ryou." She asked me pointblank.

I swallowed and hoped that my bruises could not be seen. "I found out that he is a Chosen." I admitted. I did plan to tell some truth in this. The looks on their faces matched: All in extreme astonishment. "When I found that out, Hope took control and now I don't know what you guys are being weird about." I gave them a puzzled look.

Unfortunately, my puzzled look was returned to me four-fold. "Who?" They asked in unison.

I groaned. I remembered too late that I had kept the spirit to myself and had not told anyone about the Time Spirit inside of me. I felt a warm pressure on my shoulder and I knew it was Hope placing her hand there tenderly. Her ghostly figure smiled down at me and spoke gently, "_Allow me to explain to them._" I nodded softly, closed my eyes, and felt myself fall forward, but never felt the impact.

**…**

Hope's eyes opened, soft golden eyes replacing my once harsh lilac ones. She smiled and gave a small bow to the Guardians. "**Hello**." She greeted them with her voice sounding soft and serene, which was different than the previous occupant of that body. "**I am the Spirit of Time. You may call me Hope.**"

Cleo stepped forward and inspected her further. "Your aura is golden…You are the spirit that shares Rhea's body?" She asked, finding the subtle differences in Hope's appearance from mine.

Hope smiled sweetly to the Earth Guardian. "**Yes, you have already gained your aura sensing ability from your spirit.**" Cleo was taken aback by the Spirit's knowledge of her. "**You know full well of the spirit within you, Cleo.**" She spoke sweetly and then turned to the rest of them. "**Each one of you has another spirit dwelling within you.**" Her voice was more serious with these words.

Daida blinked a few times, allowing herself to accept this person in front of her. For all of her studies and everything she had learned in our world seemed to not make any sense in this world. "Well…" She began nervously, "Cleo and Rhea have obviously had contact with their spirits, but I haven't heard a peep in my head." She tapped her temple a few times.

Hope nodded a little. "**I understand, Daida. Your spirits fully awoke when I took over Rhea's body for the first time.**" She spread out her arms and smiled at them. "**Now you can harness your our powers.**" She reached forward and gently brushed each one of the Guardian's foreheads with the tips of her fingers. Their eyes drooped after her swift movements, and closed once she had touched each of them.

**…**

I awoke in a room that I did not recognize. It had white walls that were covered by various objects. The first to catch my eye was a holographic poster of Yuugi, which would change him into Yami at the right angle. On another wall, there was a large mirror with very minimal decorations around it. I moved over to it and peered into it, where I found myself staring at a reflection of Hope. Her golden eyes batted at me in confusion and when I opened my mouth to ask her what she was doing there, she mimicked my same movement. I shook my head and turned my head away from the looking glass and found myself facing a door. I took a deep breath and went to open it. I found an empty hallway and a door right across from the one I stood in. This door appeared to be locked up tight with chains and seals crossing it multiple times. I could hear voices down the hall and it finally hit me: I had been in my soul room. I closed the door behind me as I began to sprint down the darkened path towards the sounds, hoping to find a light again.

**…**

"_Oh my God, I'm dead!_" Bree cried out as her ghostly form hovered over her body, which was laying face first in the ground and seeming not to move.

Daida floated over her own body, which was now standing up straight and smiling gently, her blue eyes glowing with power. "_I didn't think that Spirits could hear each other in this world._" The spectral figure said, placing a finger on her chin.

Joan's body stood up and chuckled as she stretched out. Her fiery red eyes seemed lit with excitement. The ethereal version of Joan groaned. "_It doesn't surprise me. That girl's wailing could probably be heard all the way back in our world._" The ghostly Bree stuck out her tongue at her.

Cleo smiled brightly as she glided over to her friends. "_We aren't dead. These are the real Guardians!_" She exclaimed as she turned back to look at her physical form of her internal friend and mentor.

"**Hey, Airhead!**" Joan's body called to the Air Guardian's body. "**Get up. Don't tell me you can't even stand.**" She scoffed, placing her hands on her hips.

Bree's head popped up as she glared at Joan. "**Don't call me that, Ember!**" She called before getting to her feet. Her eyes were shining an orange color that enhanced her serious stare.

Daida's body shook her head. "**It's your fault for not controlling your body yet, Aria.**" She spoke smoothly.

Cleo's body smoothed out her ponytail as her green eyes glowed brightly. "**Don't tease her like that, Dew.**" She spoke in almost a scolding tone. "**We just woke up.**" She added, stepping a little forward to shield the redheaded girl.

Ember, the original Fire Guardian, growled at the interference. "**Terra, you're being too overprotective.**" She clenched her fists as she seemed to be ready to fight this situation out.

"**She is right. Stop this squabbling.**" Hope spoke loudly and clearly as she got their attention. They realized her presence and dropped down to one knee, placing their right hands over their hearts in a balled up fist. They all muttered in unison, "My Lady," giving her the respects that they seemed to lack for each other. Hope pouted, "**Friends, no need to be so formal. It has only been a few millennia.**" She smiled sweetly to them. "**Stand.**" She gave the command as a friendly suggestion.

They looked between each other, waiting for one of them to be the first, preferably not themselves. Dew went ahead and sighed as she stood and smiled at the golden eyes. "**Hope…It's so good to see you. I never knew what happened to you after…**" She trailed off, her gaze falling to the ground as she flashbacked to a painful memory.

Hope lifted her chin and smiled brightly at her. "**Don't worry. We are all united again.**" She gently cooed in attempts to sooth her. "**But we need to give our new hosts the key.**"

Terra jumped up at Hope's words. "**My Lady…I mean, Hope, I've been slowly giving my host the key ever since I could.**" She pointed up to what seemed like open space above her, when she was actually directly pointing at Cleo.

Daida turned to Cleo and furrowed her brows. "_What key?_" She asked quickly. Cleo returned with a shrug of her spectral shoulders.

Ember hissed at Terra. "**You know we can't see your host's spirit, no matter what world we are in.**" She glanced up at her own spirit, who seemed to be glaring right back at her.

Hope cleared her throat to call their attention again. "**Girls, please.**" She sounded like a tired mother of four little girls. "**Just give it to them all right now.**" She placed her hands on her hips, waiting for them to obey her.

Aria frowned gently and tilted her head. "**But what if our host's aren't ready for this?**" She asked, worried about the hovering Bree above her. Bree smiled happily down at her possessor, glad to know that she was looking out for them.

Hope smiled gently at the Air Guardian. "**They were able to allow you into this plane. They are ready.**" She reassured her, and the others nodded in agreement. They took their hands and placed them in front of them, as if giving a hug to an invisible person. They all recited their own chant to cross worlds, repeating it several times, and Hope remained silent as she also mimicked their stance. The whole area about them began to glow, the trees swaying and shuddering at the power within this clearing. If anyone was to come across this, they would have felt an immense pressure surrounding these women. As the ground seemed to give a little, Hope formed the word, "_**Advanti**_" which came out as an echoing sound around them and caused the pressure around them to suddenly explode.

**…**

I had finally found the light that I had been searching for in that dark hallway. It felt like I had been running for hours, but I knew time could not be the same in my head as it was outside. I smiled as I leapt towards the light, realizing too late that the pathway I had beneath my feet on was gone. I began to fall, my surroundings looking as if I was falling from the stars back to a crash landing on earth. I started to scream, until I felt myself being caught by a transparent film. It looked as if the sky itself had caught me and decided to spare my life. I paused a moment, before realizing I was sinking through it, but saw no evidence of myself on the other side of it. It was too late before I was swallowed up and gone from my mind.

**...**

Cleo: You couldn't even give them a long chapter?

Kinakao: Yes, well…Hey! How do you guys like the font changes with speaking? Let me know if you want me to keep it, trash it, whatever. In case you guys need a little explanation: "This is for normal speech," "_This is for anyone in ghost form,_" "**And this is for the Guardians when they are in control of a body**."

Rhea: Mphfmm…Mphfmmm!

Bree: Ha! Well, I guess we'll see if there is any Rhea torture next time.

Daida: First Seto, now Rhea? Who's gonna be next?

See you next time! Please Rate and Review!


	15. The Will of the Guardians

Kinakao: Hello again! It's so great to be back again.

All Guardians: The computer is fixed!

Kinakao: Yes, my computer is fixed so I can now go back to my usual timing of posting once a week. I hope you all do not mind as an apology this longer than normal chapter.

Daida: She also has another chapter that she will be posting up sooner than usual.

Kinakao: But first, we have this chapter for them to look forward to. And here is Mai to do my disclaimer.

Mai: Kinakao doesn't own YuGiOh, it's characters, or its places. She does own the Guardians, the world they come from, and that water girl over there who thinks she can get with Joey.

Daida: Grrrr...

Hope you all enjoy!

**...**

Chapter 15: The Will of the Guardians

The sight I found when I opened my eyes would have been impossible in any other world besides this one. I was seeing double: The Guardians were circled up and my friends were hovering above them with expressions of wonder and amazement. My expression mirrored theirs as I looked down and saw the power radiating off of our usual bodies so intensely that the earth beneath them started to give under them. At Hope's echoing word, a sudden jolt went through my body, causing me to clench my heart as my breathing became heavy. It was only a second after that when a large amount of electricity struck me and sent pain rushing through me all the way to my core. I let out a shriek in agony, my body becoming shackled in electricity as it enclosed on me, continually burning, and bound around me in a whirlwind of torture. Even when I could barely think through the pain, I was praying it would just end. I had shut my eyes when this torment had started, but I forced one open to look in front of me when I heard cries nearby. Even with my vision blurring, I looked out to find the source of these cries and to see if there was a way to escape my prison.

Instead, I witnessed my friends undergoing their own types of suffering. Each was painfully enduring agonizing afflictions from their own type of element. Daida had been imprisoned in a floating ball of water, causing her to drown while she could not escape. Joan was lit aflame and screaming out as the fire burned her, her hand reaching out towards me, begging for help. Stones had risen up from the ground and were squeezing the life out of Cleo as she struggled against them. I could hear her bones snapping from the pressure. Bree floated in the air like a ragdoll with a blank expression as blood dripped off of her from several deep gashes on her arms, legs, and cheeks. The air around her had become a cyclone of death, slicing her up continuously while her will to live had seem to vanish with the winds. Tears formed in my eyes as I watched from my cage. "No..." I forced out, the vibrations from my lips causing the pain to increase around me. I managed to tilt my head downwards to look at the Guardians below us and widened my eyes as I saw them focusing their gazes on us, but offering no assistance. I growled at the situation, not about to allow my friends to die this way. I pressed my arms up to touch the electric fence, and only a wince came from the new pain I felt from this pressure. "I have to...Help them..." I spoke to myself, finding the strength to push further against the barrier. I could feel my skin searing from the contact, but I did not allow it to stop me. I summoned up everything I had to break my bonds as I let out a scream from frustration. I flung my head upwards and with a surge of power I had never felt before, my eyes flashed a bright golden color and the pain was gone instantly.

I had not even realized I had been in spectral form until I slowly floated the ground, stood for a moment, then collapsed to my knees where I could see the soft grass through my transparent legs. My ethereal body felt weak, but the sudden thought of my friends made my head pop up as I looked around to help them. However, I found that they were all in the same situation I was: on their knees, looking around weakly as their physical forms approached them. Hope came to me, having broken the circle they had made first, and smiled warmly. "**You made it through the trial of Guardianship. I knew you would.**" She spoke proudly before crouching down to my level. **"Now it's time for your body back." **She reached out and gently touched my forehead. In a blink of an eye, I was staring at the spot I had just been kneeling at.

Ember snorted at Dew. **"I guess we'll have to do our battle another time."** She bent down to the girl who was glaring up at her from her spectral knees and grabbed Joan's hand.

Dew grinned at the Fire Guardian before she vanished.** "Over a millennia has past and you still want to waste your time."** She chuckled before grabbing up Daida's hand and allowed the girl back into her body.

Terra shook her head in disappointment. **"Those two always competing..."** She sighed. **"We all have the same amount of power."** She looked down at a smiling Cleo. She allowed herself a brief smile before letting the student take over the body again.

Aria reached out towards Bree as if to hug her, but did not touch the girl. **"I'm so glad you made it."** She smiled, the relief coloring her voice vividly. **"I guess having a boy's side really helps toughen you up."** Aria winked and giggled softly before hugging the spirit tightly, leaving Bree to hug the air as she gained control.

Now that I was back inside my body, all of my weakness had gone away completely. I pumped my fingers, opening and closing my fists as I wondered what had just happened to all of us. Hope appeared next to me and I shot her a puzzled look as I asked aloud, "What exactly was that?" The confusion in my voice could have been mistaken for anger.

Hope glanced up, possibly looking to the other Guardians to tell them to inform their hosts. She returned her look down to me as she floated just a few inches off the ground. "_The trial of Guardianship is where the host is put through intense struggle and sees the other Guardians in danger."_ She seemed sad as she spoke, as if remembering a time she had to do it with her friends. _"When you are the host to The Spirit of Time, you see them dying._" She said quietly. Hope did not allow herself to stay vulnerable. _"It is the Guardians' will that makes them survive the ordeal."_ She spoke with a nod.

I glanced over at the others, who were now finding out about the illusions from their own spirits. I wondered what they had seen. I asked my next question silently. _Has any host died from that process? _I almost did not want to know the answer.

Hope was not willing to give it either. _"You all can now use your powers,"_ she said evasively, dodging my question_. "Please tell them for me. You all can train now."_ She asked kindly, offering me a smile to help me forget the queries that burned in my mind.

Even with all my ponderings still on my mind, a smile broke out on my face to keep from alerting anyone to my worries. I was not done questioning the soul who owned half my body. "Hey guys," I spoke loudly to grab the girls' attention away from their spiritual conversations. "Hope says we can use our Guardian powers now." I said triumphantly. In truth, I was actually very excited about this new revelation. I could not wait to start using my control over time to my full potential.

However, Hope could read my mind. _"Don't even think about it, Rhea." _Her serious voice rang in my ear. _"If you use your powers outside of your body, you can never return to this world."_ She warned me. I gave a small frown at the rain she poured on my parade.

Cleo blinked a few times, "But, I could use some of my powers before." She said thoughtfully. "How exactly do I practice helping plants grow and seeing auras better?" She asked, placing a hand on her hip and a finger to her cheek as she tilted her head towards it.

Joan pondered on the question for a moment and smiled as the figurative light bulb went off in her head. As she got this idea, she snapped her fingers to start her explanation and sparks shined around her digits. However, a small flame shot out from the spark her fingers had created and straight into her face. "Ah!" She let out a scream as she fell backwards. At first we all tried to reach out for her as she stumbled down, but when she sat up with black ash covering her nose and a scowl accompanied on her features, we broke down in a giggling fit. She reached up to touch her face, looked at the soot on her fingers, and then even Joan joined us in the laugh.

Once Bree had gotten a chance to control her chuckles, she closed her eyes and began to concentrate. Her eyes clenched tighter as she breathed in and out, and within half a minute, Bree was rising in the air like she had in her ghostly form. She opened her eyes and a smile erupted on her face as she began to twist and turn in the air. "Guys, I can fly!" She cheered, before she began to tiptoe through the air, swinging her arms back and forth.

The rest of us watched her, but Daida's eyebrows furrowed in distaste as Bree pranced in the air with incredibly fairy like movements, using all of the meanings of the word. "Aren't you supposed to be a boy?" She called up to the flying Guardian.

Bree's singsong voice chirped out, "Jealous...!" She extended the word teasingly as she hung in the air, now doing flips a few feet off the ground. She at least had the decency to hold down her skirt as she moved through the air.

Cleo watched these actions before deciding to see how her abilities had increased from just what she had been able to access before the trial. She looked to the ground and clenched her left fist, raising it up. A large piece of rock broke off from the rest of the earth surrounding it, following her hand as it rose into the air as a floating obelisk.

Daida shook her head as she turned away from the prancing Bree and saw the immense piece of land that Cleo controlled. She was stunned for a moment, but frowned as she felt the need to show off as well. She closed her eyes and raised her hands above her head, stretched outwards with fingers spread apart. A small pulse went through her body and nothing happened. We watched her keep her stance, her face showing discomfort as she seemed to be still trying to attempt something. Without any warning, a wave of water crashed onto all of us from behind, soaking us onlookers, and the amount that remained floated innocently above Daida's head. When she opened her eyes and saw the damage she had done, an apologetic smile crossed her features. "Sorry guys." She chuckled nervously, turning from use to use the remaining liquid to nourish the trees behind her.

Bree tried to dry herself off by twirling quicker, but all she did was rain down on the ground below her as she floated back to earth. Cleo put the soaked rock back in its place as Daida and Joan approached me. I was wringing out my skirt as best as I could when I looked up and saw their expectant eyes. I swallowed harshly and shook my head. "I can't use my powers." I said sadly. "If I do, we can't come back to this world." My wet hair seemed to frame my disappointed features to show how upset I was about it.

Joan took an aggressive step towards me. "Who says? Hope?" She questioned. There seemed something different about her, as if she was channeling Ember or even some other part of her I had never seen before. "You should show us what you can do." She demanded. Her face seemed filled with anger.

Bree cocked her head. "Chill out, hothead." At the sound of the higher pitched voice, Joan's featured returned to normal. "Rhea doesn't have to. If Hope gave her a warning, then she should follow it." A nod was given not only by the redhead but also the two remaining Guardians agreed.

I smiled at Bree and wrapped my arms around the girl. "Thanks, Bree." She smiled and patted my back, replying with a short "That's what family is for" response.

Cleo looked down at her wet clothes and then up to the group. "I think it's time to wrap it up for the day." She shook out her blouse as she spoke. "We should train here every day after school to hone our new abilities." She glanced to Daida for backup.

The water Guardian was happy to oblige. "Yes. We have a threat and we need to make sure we can take it on." She shot me a look and I nodded in turn. The hooded man was still on the loose and Bakura was not exactly the friendliest person on the planet. I felt with the Guardians trained in their powers, we would not have to worry. "Let's end it for now and meet here again to plan." Daida recommended and I was glad that she was taking charge. At the agreement of everyone, we began to head back to our houses, forced to drip dry all the way to our destinations.

**...**

The twilight air blew in softly through a small rectangular window that resided high above a dark room. The sun was setting slowly and moonlight offered its glow to shine in the center of the room. A sudden wisp of air went through the area and at the edge of the light appeared a girl kneeling down on one knee as she faced towards the soft rays that lit up her body, but left her face shrouded in darkness. "Master." She spoke roughly. "They have awakened."

A small chuckle erupted from behind her in the dark. "I see you've gained full control, Shara." He spoke, his smooth voice making her purse her lips to keep herself from speaking out or moving. When no response came from her, he continued on. "It would have been easier had everything gone according to plan, but I proud of what you could do." He grinned softly.

The girl did not let out a smile, but a faint rosy coloring was added to her cheeks at the slight complement. "It was difficult to overpower both souls in the body." She confessed, letting out a hint of her weary state. "If I am to come back here again, I need more power." She spoke softer now, almost embarrassed at asking for help.

The man reached down and grabbed her violently by the arm to pull her up from her kneel to standing. Spinning her away from the light, a gasp escaped her lips as he pressed into her body with a painful amount of force. His arm slithered around her waist, pulling her into him with even more force. His face was mere centimeters away from hers as his hot breath made her eyes widen with anticipation. "I can't have you, my love." He whispered to her, a smirk ringing in his voice. "Let her mind give in and influence her to my bidding." He commanded of her as he began to dig his nails into the girl's side.

She winced softly, her voice giving in to his hold on her. "Yes, Master Dardanos." She closed her eyes as he crashed his lips into hers. His grip on her sides became stronger as her eyes opened fully, the white flash of her eyes giving soft light to the dark room for the briefest of moments. This allowed the true owner of the body, that this man held, to meet with the black eyes of Dardanos. As he pressed her further against him, his body glowed with a soft white light in the darkness.

**...**

When I got home, I immediately removed my shoes and socks to make sure I did not track in any water. As soon as I closed the door, I heard a call from the kitchen. "Rhea, is that you?" For a spilt second, I could have sworn it was my mother harking for me. I was corrected when a blonde head peeked out from behind the doorway. "Oh good, I need to talk to you." She said, her sultry voice serious as she moved back, away from my sight behind the small bit of plaster wall to finish her task.

I swallowed harshly and was overcome by rash thoughts that made me nervous: Was she going to kick me out now that I was healed up? Did she discover I was a duelist? A million more possibilities ran through my head, including that she might have gotten a call from my mom, as impossible as that was. "About what?" I asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"I got a few calls today." _Oh, crap. I knew it._ "It was from a woman named Ishizu." She continued as she came out from the kitchen and leaned against the doorframe. She donned her usual purple blazer, white tank top, and miniskirt ensemble, and caught me in the middle of breathing a sigh of relief from the name. "You know her?" She questioned, crossing her arms as her look turned as serious as her tone.

I straightened up, attempting to act casual. Of course no one from my world would call Mai, but I did wonder why Ishizu would call. "Yeah, I know her." My answer was plain, but Mai caught the puzzled look that hinted at my features.

The woman nodded, closing her eyes as she stood still in her stance. "Well, she phoned today to say that she is going to be paying your rent here." She opened her lilac eyes which seemed to carry a grin that matched her lips. "So, all you have to worry about is getting good grades in school. That's from the both of us." She tilted her head to the side and winked at me.

I could not believe it. Ishizu and Mai really were giving me the chance to live the life I wanted here. I smiled brightly and nodded cheerfully. "You can count on me!" I exclaimed as a small laugh in my voice could be heard. I brought up my hand in a thumbs-up to add even more emphasis.

Mai lifted herself from the doorframe and went to the couch, where she practically plopped herself down on the dark leather in front of the large flat screen TV. She crossed one leg over the other, relaxing herself, before she spoke again. "Before I forget, Yuugi called too." She glanced over to me since I had started to walk off towards my room.

When I heard those words, my heart felt like it had stopped. I turned on my heel to look at her and I could feel the color crawling onto my cheeks. "When?" I asked, attempting to mask any emotion in my tone.

Mai's smirk told me I was not doing a very good job of it. "He called a few times. I left his number on the fridge." She spoke as if it was of no importance, reached for the remote, and turned on the television to allow the sound of the news to capture her attention. I knew immediately she was giving me the time to call him in seclusion and without any interference. I silently thanked her and dashed into the kitchen. Mai's smile coupled with a chuckle and the words, "To be that age again..." was her only response to my disappearance. She leaned back and allowed her blonde hair to shake out behind her.

**...**

I found the sticky note on the fridge written in Mai's handwriting. There was Yuugi's number accompanied by a small "Good luck." Also on the note appeared to be a chibi self-portrait of the woman posing with a peace sign. I rolled my eyes and grabbed the paper, stealing away to my room. There, next to the bed stand, was a corded beige phone. I sat at the edge of the bed, the same place Yami had sat when I was wounded, and suddenly became overwhelmed with fears. Reaching out for that phone seemed ten times scarier than the cloaked man, my eyes closing from nerves. I forced myself to breathe, extend my arm, grab the receiver, and then open my eyes to dial in the number. As soon as all the buttons were pressed, I shut my eyes once more and held the phone to my ear. It then occurred to me that it was evening: Yuugi could be eating dinner or doing homework. I opened my eyes to check the time, when my fears got the best of me. I pulled the phone from my ear to hang it up, intent on leaving the call to be unknown. However, half way to my goal, the ringing stopped. "Hello?" Yuugi's voice answered the call. I stared at the contraption in my hand a moment longer. "Hello, is anyone there?" He persisted, a bit of confusion in his voice.

I whipped the phone back to the side of my head. "Hi, Yuugi." I spoke almost breathlessly. Had I forgotten to breathe? "Mai told me you called." I left out the details, shifting my eyes to the note that rested beside me.

I could hear the smile in his voice. "Rhea." He confirmed, before clearing his throat. "I wanted to ask if you would like to meet me tomorrow, since we have the day off." He seemed almost as nervous as I was.

I did not understand why his voice mimicked my emotions. It just seemed like we would be hanging out. "Sure, Yuugi. Did you want me to invite Daida and the others?" I asked innocently, calming myself down. I could see the day in my head: A large group of kids walking down the streets of the city. We probably would look like a very odd gang.

But Yuugi was silent for a moment before finally saying, "No. I was thinking..." He hesitated. I could hear him swallow like I normally did when I was trying to summon up courage. "It would be just the two of us." He finally breathed out.

I blinked as I tried to take in the information. Slowly, the picture that had formed in my head started to make the gaggle of people I had conjured up disappear one by one. This continued until only Yuugi and I were alone, walking together, as if it was... "A date?" I asked, continuing my broken thought into words. My voice almost came out as a squeak.

Again, silence was prevalent on his end before he answered with a shy, "Yeah." There was again more silence as he waited for me to reply, but when nothing came out from me, he began a nervous ramble. "I mean, we really haven't gotten a chance to talk since you've been gone and you promised me-"

"Alright." I cut him off. My heart sunk a little when he reminded me of the promise I had made him. A part of me felt like the whole reason he wanted to see me was so he could get the information out of me. "I'll meet you. Where at?" I asked, my voice having a small hint of lifelessness to it that had not been there before.

Yuugi's voice on the other hand was chipper and happy. "Really? Great!" I could not help but smile a little at his excitement. "We'll meet downtown where we first met." It only took a moment of confused silence on my end to alert him to the fact that I did not know how to get there and he started to give me directions to there from Mai's house.

I began to feel the butterflies fluttering in my stomach as I promised him, "I'll meet you at noon, sharp." He wished me a good night and I gently hung up the receiver. For a moment, I had forgotten my worries and was focused on the fact that I had a date with Yuugi. It was after this instant that I allowed my gaze to wander to the door. I could still hear the news on. I was grateful that Mai was good about privacy. I lay back on my bed and closed my eyes, wondering if she had known that this was going to happen all along. Maybe that future-seer told her. I thought to myself as I groaned, putting my hands over my face, as if I could hold back the blush I could feel rising in my cheeks this way. But as my heartbeat slowed to a normal pace, I quickly found myself tired beyond what I had known. It was only a matter of seconds before I fell into a deep slumber, a smile gently caressing my lips in my sleep.

**...**

Bree: I can fly!

Cleo: That's established.

Rhea: A date next time?

Joan: What's with that creepy cloaked dude?

Daida: I will get Joey's heart!

Kinakao: See you all next chapter. Please review!


	16. Time and Date? :Part One:

Kinakao: Hello, hello! Welcome back!

Joan: Why can't I go on a date today?

Daida: Ryou's too scared to ask you.

Cleo: What about you and Joey?

Kinakao: As you all can see, there is a genre that this fanfic falls into called romance! It's about time we had some. So, let's have Serenity do our intro today!

Serenity: Oh…Ah…Kinakao doesn't own YuGiOh or any of it's characters. She does own the Guardians, the restaurant, and she only wishes she owned the present.

Kinakao: Hey! Well…Enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 16: Time and Date?

I could hear laughing around me. A darkened face with white eyes wisped by me in the dimly lit room. White feathers glowed on the floor, leaving a trail of where the figure had stepped before. Nevertheless, I could barely make out the shadow other than its glowing, crying eyes. _"Help..." _She whispered. The voice was familiar as it washed over me, giving me chills. Just as I was about to place where I had heard it before, my body began to shake violently, causing the darkness around me to become suffocating. "Rhea, I need your help!" A loud cry called to me.

Bree's voice rang in my ears as I shot up in the bed, throwing the redhead from me on to the floor in the process. My vision cleared after a minute of trying to focus on reality, and I turned my head to look over the side of the bed at a pouting Bree. "What the..." I started, narrowing my eyes at her. "What are you doing here?" I questioned.

At seeing me fully awaken, she crawled back to the side of the bed, giving me an innocently bright smile. "Good, you're awake." She spoke as she stood up, brushing herself off. She was wearing the same green dress and blue legging outfit she had come into this world with. "I need your help: Do you have any sexy underwear?"

"Get out."

Bree rose her hands up to plead with me. "Come on, Rhea. I need it for my date." She batted her large grey eyes at me.

My head hit the pillow again as my gaze on her turned curiously. "You have a date too?" I asked, raising my arm up to place it on my forehead. "With who?" I needed to wake up.

Bree shot me an impatient look. "With Seto Kaiba. He's taking me out today." She spoke with a happy nod, obviously pleased at her own catch.

"Seriously, get out." I insisted, rolling on my side as I lifted one hand to point out the door. It was then that I realized I had slept in my pink and blue uniform.

Bree pouted as she sat next to me on the bed. "Oh come on, you said you had a date too, right?" She brightened as she found her way to get me to help her with her negligee. "Who are you going out with?" She probed as she gently poked me.

I groaned a little before sitting up to stare into the smoky eyes of my cousin. "It's Yuugi, okay?" I admitted before shaking my head a little. "Why are you asking me for underwear?" I demanded before throwing my legs over the side of the bed.

Bree nodded solemnly. "Oh...That explains things..." I shot her a confused look before she stood up and began to pace. "I would have asked Daida, but her things are too..." She began to motion her hands around her chest. "Tiny for me." It was insulting to all of us that despite being a boy in our world, Bree was the most endowed of all the Guardians. "And I don't know Cleo that well and Joan is even smaller than Daida." She continued, without letting me get a word in. "Besides, Yuugi doesn't have any women's underwear. Plus, you and I are family, so we can totally borrow from each other." She fluttered her eyes at me hopefully.

I snapped to full attention at her words. "What did you say?" I asked incredulously.

"We're family; don't sisters and stuff do that?"

"Not that, Gold Digger." I growled at her. I could not believe I had to explain this. "One, you're my male cousin, so, that's gross." I shot her a glare. "And two, why would even think about asking Yuugi?"

Bree smiled brightly at me. "Didn't you know? I'm staying in the guest room at Yuugi's place." She twirled in place to turn from me and whisked towards my drawers. "Solomon invited me to stay when Daida was giving out the uniforms." She opened a drawer carefully, giving a disappointed pout when all she found was socks. "I wondered why he was up so early this morning." She started to pick through the drawer to see if she could uncover the panties she wanted to steal.

It took me a moment to process everything she had told me, leaving me to stare blankly at the floor. Somehow, it almost made me jealous that my own cousin was staying so close to Yuugi, when I could barely get any time with him. I shook my head. It had been my own decision to live apart from him, and Bree took the opportunity I had denied. My eyes glanced to the clock on the bedside table. It was ten thirty four. I lifted myself up, walking over to the dresser and pushing the girl aside to reach one of the bottom drawers. I pulled it open, revealing what undergarments I had, and pulled out two lingerie sets: One black, one white. "No having sex with him in my clothes." I warned her, shuddering at the thought as Bree skipped over to the closet, grabbing out a long black dress. "At least take any offer he gives to buy you stuff so you don't keep using my things." The disparaging tone was ignored as I handed her the black set, causing her to beam with delight. Grabbing her shoulders, I led her outside of my door, forcing her to stay out of the room. "Stay there until I come out." I commanded. As I reached for the door to close it, I saw her salute at me before a mahogany barrier eclipsed her. I shook my head, moving to the closet myself to pull out a white short-sleeved shirt and an army green skirt. On the floor, I found a pair of black flats that seemed to fit perfectly. I laid the clothes on the bed, undressed, and raced into the shower.

As the hot water warmed my skin, I thought of my dream. That person who was asking for help seemed to be in terrible pain, but my memory of it was fading. I let out a tired sigh, glancing down towards my feet as the water soaked the back of my neck. My eyes widened in surprise as my gaze found a small golden circle just above my heart marked on my chest. There were twelve symbols surrounding the circle with two arrows pointing outward towards the circumference. In a small panic, I grabbed my blue shower puff and began to attempt to scrub off the image. When the soap washed away, it was still there. It dawned on me that it was the same sigil that had appeared on my body when I was wounded in my world. _"It is the mark of your Guardianship." _Hope spoke as her spirit body materialized behind me, her back pressed up against mine. I noticed that the arrows were unmoving, unlike last time. _"The symbol will move when you use our abilities."_ Hope read my mind. _"Or when your chosen has unlocked your absolute power." _She lowered her gaze before disappearing back inside my mind.

The symbol vanished with Hope. "What do you mean?" I asked as I turned around to face my alter ego. However, her presence was gone and silence was the only answer I received. I let out a disappointed sigh and finished my washing before stepping out into the now frigid air.

When I came out, I found that Bree has left. On top of my clothes were a golden bracelet and a set of scarab earrings. There was a note from Bree and Mai under these items informing me of their pact to team up and make sure I looked good for my date. I dressed swiftly, making sure my skirt was straight, before glancing into the mirror across the room. There my reflection showed my white shirt hugging my curves delicately, a swooping neckline almost making me feel exposed, green mid-thigh skirt giving me enough flare to twirl, and a small, green, cloth flower neatly rested on my hip. As I put the earrings and bracelet on to add the finishing touches, I realized that the bruises Bakura had marked me with were faint, but visible. I sped over to the vanity and grabbed up a golden choker that had a thick band made of multiple golden strands that joined together to clasp in the front with a hexagonal clip that had rhinestones in the center of it. I looked down at my broken watch that rested sadly next to the place I had retrieved the necklace. I gave out a small sigh as I left it behind, quickly making my way out the door to meet up with Yuugi.

**…**

My breath escaped my lips in heavy pants once I had come to a stop near the meeting place. I had run all the way there from Mai's apartment just for the fact that it was the only way I knew how to keep myself from turning around and avoiding this occasion altogether. It was not because I did not want to go out with Yuugi, but there mere fact that this would be my first date, ever. I tried to calm my heart and my nerves as I looked around, trying to ensure I looked presentable by stroking my slightly frazzled hair with my hands. There in front of the store was my spiky haired date, seeming to not notice my arrival. I was surprised at his slight clothing change: He wore black pants with multiple belts (per usual) and a black button up shirt that was pressed and left open at the top, exposing the black belt about his neck as well as giving way for the millennium puzzle to hang down to his stomach. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled up, giving him a more casual look to his somewhat dressy appearance.

A stain of red crossed my cheeks as my thoughts wandered to the boy's alter ego and how that man would appear in this same ensemble. A quick mental slap to myself snapped me out of the daydream. I was here for Yuugi. Only Anzu could be lucky enough to get a date with Yami. It was only after my internal battle did Yuugi take notice of me, a bright smile breaking out on to his face. I hoped that my expressions had not given away any of my thoughts, so I offered a smile in return. "Right on the dot." He approached me with the complement.

I chuckled softly, shrugging as I lifted my left hand to show him my bare wrist. "I wouldn't know. My watch is broken." I had only meant to point it out, but his face told me he had almost expected my reaction.

He pulled out a small box from his back pocket that was wrapped in silver paper. The small golden bow on top had a tiny tag with my name on in. "Here. I wanted to give you this." He contained the excitement in his voice as he offered the box to me. I tilted my head slightly, reaching for the present warily, and I glanced at him suspiciously. "Open it." He insisted. My eyes lowered to the gift in hand before slowly pulling apart the ribbon and paper to reveal a velvet box. I could feel Yuugi's stare of anticipation, so there was no hesitation in opening the lid. There, resting gracefully inside the silken box was a beautiful new watch. It appeared to be made of gold and diamonds. The face had roman numerals etched along the rim, just beyond the golden hands. These hands rested on top of a gold and diamond flower, whose petals pointed to each hour: Four large petals for the twelve, three, six, and nine markings; smaller petals pointed to the rest of the hours and contained no diamonds in the leaves. Along the edge of the face, a string of these sparkling stones glittered in the sun, and the band that held the whole piece together was solid, rather than linked. "Do you like it?" He asked when I did not respond right away. There was a sense of nervousness in his voice.

I had been staring at it silently with my mouth agape for about a minute out of pure astonishment at the jewelry I had in my hands. "Yuugi, it's gorgeous." I breathed out, finally bringing up my fingers to touch it gently, assuring myself it was real. "But, why?" I asked, bringing my mind back to reality. "When?" I continued to ask, wondering how he could get me such an extravagant present.

A small flush of red crossed Yuugi's cheeks as he explained. "Well, when you were attacked, I noticed your watch broke." He reached into the box and carefully lifted out the timepiece from it. "So that's when I started to think about getting you a new one." He grasped my hand and pulled it closer to him, allowing him to fasten the band to my once naked wrist. Once it was on, he let it go, giving me a chance to pull my hand back, out of slight embarrassment. "There are a lot of reasons for why." He spoke sweetly as he stepped closer to me, making me meet with his amethyst eyes.

My face had turned the color of my heart, which was rapidly thrusting itself against my ribcage in a suicidal attempt to escape. He jerked his head while pointing behind him towards the downtown area. "Let's go grab some lunch, Rhea." He spoke before turning from me, but waited for me to join him. Still a little stunned, I pushed my body forward, allowing us to start walking together, while I was already reeling from just the start of this day.

**…**

Yuugi had taken the lead for today, which was somewhat strange to see. We passed many shops and restaurants, but none seemed to even catch the boy's interest in the least. It was finally a few blocks down that he came to a halt in front of a busy Italian restaurant and shot me a happy look. "We're here." He offered his hand to me politely. I reached out for it gingerly, touching the soft skin with my fingertips before interlocking our hands. Suddenly, my heart slammed against my chest, almost knocking the wind out of my lungs. I stopped in my place, eyes wide, and forced Yuugi to stop as well. He turned to me, worry replacing his cheery expression. "Rhea, are you okay?" He asked, gripping my hand tighter.

I nodded slowly, the sensation dissipating as quickly as it had arrived. "It's nothing." I assured him, the look of concern still on his features. "Let's go." I spoke, giving him a warm smile. This seemed to be the ticket I needed, for his worry relaxed and I was whisked inside without another word.

Yet, somehow, I wish I had not been. The lobby was crammed to capacity with people, barely allowing any room to even breathe. Struggling to keep our hands together, Yuugi managed to weave us between the crushing mosh pit to get us to the host's stand. There, I found myself in a bubble of air, apparently the only reason that the workers there were not dying from suffocation. Yuugi cleared his throat to get the hostess's attention. "Reservation for Mouto." His voice was firm, almost as if Yami had taken over without my notice. The girl that stood there seemed almost bored even in the busy atmosphere, rolling her eyes as she looked to the computer that rested at the station. She clicked her nails at it for a few moments, her black bangs getting in her view before she exhaled a puff of air to move them out of her way. It took her a moment, looking from Yuugi, to me, to the computer, before she grabbed two menus and turned from us as she asked us to follow her.

As we followed, I began to look around at the rooms we were going through. The first room was just past the door that led out from the lobby. It was a spacious room with many tables in the center and booths that lined the walls. This room was filled with people who were laughing, chatting, eating, and all around making loud merriment. The hostess led us further to another door on the west wall, keeping up her quick pace. This room was smaller, had a few paintings on the walls, dimmer lights, and consisted of two booths and three tables. The tables had red and gold cloths, with candles in the center, while the booths had a similar set up, with heart shaped candles, but instead had the addition of large curtains that tied to each side of the seats. These curtains were made thick, their blood red color aiming to optimize privacy for those who chose this stall. My eyes betrayed me by forming droplets. "How did you…" I asked softly, becoming more and more amazed.

He smiled, using my trapped hand to lead me to my seat before releasing it and taking his place across from me. "I wanted us to have a good place to talk." He stated carefree, before ordering us two waters to dismiss the girl.

I stared at him for a moment, my hues locked on his expectant ones. "It's…difficult to tell you." I started, my cheeks warming slightly. "When you're like this." I tried to stay firm, but my voice still shook. My eyes darted around in the romantic ambiance.

Yuugi's widened his eyes in surprise at my words. He turned his head away to look at the bench next to him, giving it a stern look, and I knew he was speaking to Yami through the mind link. Before I could say anything, a sad expression crossed his features as the puzzle glowed softly. In a blink, where my date had just been seated, a taller, firmly built man sat instead. His chest filled out the dark button up much better than the previous occupant had. "Is this better for you?" Yami asked in his silky, deep voice.

I thought my nose was about to bleed with the lightheaded feeling I got when I heard him. My cheeks flared a bright red out of embarrassment and a few other reasons I desperately tried to shove out of my mind. I lowered my face into my hands, attempting to both hide my blush and prevent the nosebleed. "No, not really." I whimpered out. Just when I thought that my crush on the ancient pharaoh was waning, I found myself drooling over him again. Pulling my face out of my hands to speak again, I saw Yami confused by my expression. He turned to look at the same spot Yuugi had, and I lifted my hands to get his attention. "Stop, don't keep switching." I begged, "Just let Yuugi listen in as well." I sighed, trying to gain my composure.

Yami's eyes were not as sweet when he turned back to me. "How do you know that?" He asked, scrutinizing me.

Every fiber of my being wanted to tell him that I was a normal girl from this world that had somehow just found out the secret to the items. I wanted to tell him that I had a family here, that I belonged here with him and Yuugi. Even with their curious gaze, those eyes showed me nothing but welcoming, open acceptance of my answer. Yet my mouth was clamped shut by the fear if I told him the truth, those orbs I longed to see forever would reject me.

I could feel the ticking of my watch against my wrist, reminding of what I really was. It was then I knew, I had no choice but to tell him. I had run out of time.

**…**

Daida: Where's the rest of it?

Kinakao: Well…There's a part two…

Bree: I get to go on a date?

Kinakao: Yes, but unfortunately your date will be updated in the Secret Chapters.

Joan: Just hurry up this time with it.

Kinakao: By the way, if you all want to see pictures of what I based Yuugi's apparel for the date and basis of the watch, please go to my profile and clicky the links! See you all next time!

Please review!


	17. Perfect Timing :Part Two:

Kinakao: Welcome back to part two!

Joan: You left them hanging pretty badly.

Daida: But she's posting now.

Kinakao: That's right! And here is Seto with our introduction today!

Kaiba: …Seriously? Whatever. That poor person doesn't own YuGiOh, or any of its characters, especially me. She does own the Guardians, is too poor to actually own the restaurant, or much of anything.

Kinakao: Hey! I am so not that poor!

Bree: Enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 17: Perfect Timing

The server stopped by our table to take our orders. She had her hair in a high blonde ponytail, which flicked every time she swayed or tilted her head. Her blue eyes scanned Yami, jealousy flaring a little in her hues when he paid her no mind. His watch continued to be locked on me alone. Once she was gone, he leaned forward, placing one hand on top of the other, still giving me that curious stare. "Well?" His lips formed the word sternly, but not harsh enough to be commanding.

It was this exact moment that I realized I had nothing planned on how to tell him this news. I felt as if the most attractive test in the world was right in front of me and I had not bothered to study. I glanced to my drink, grasping it quickly, sipping at it, and then placing it back down gently as I began. "I…I'm not from here." His eyes gave no sign of surprise to this bit of news. "I know about the Millennium items." I breathed out slowly. This caused an eyebrow twitch from him. "And I know how it is to have another soul inside me." My gaze fell to the table timidly.

Yami seemed to tense a little as I talked. Once I fell silent, his eyes closed. "You avoided my question. I asked 'how.'" He opened his eyes, not seeming irritated, but I knew part of him was only holding back from being more forceful with me.

I allowed my eyes to move back up to trace his jaw line. I felt I could tell him everything, except watching him whenever I could. "I come from a place…" I leaned in closer to him, shifting my sight to ensure we were alone. "Where magic and spirits are nonsense-Fantasy even." I realized I was dancing close to the line. "I was pulled out of my world by…" I could not tell him about Ryou. "..Something. I brought my four friends away from their homes also to come here too." It hit me how I must have sounded, having practically kidnapped the Guardians here.

He was silent as he waited for me to continue. When he heard no further from me, he let out a defeated sigh, knowing he was not going to get his question fully answered. He nodded slowly before pushing himself up from his seat and stepping out from the booth. My eyes snapped to his, afraid that he was about to leave this dream he had made because of my defiance. Instead, he moved around the table to join me on my side. Even though I scooted over to give him room, he placed himself close to me before taking my hand gently, stroking the top of it with his fingertips. "I think you were brought here for a reason." He murmured, relaxing me completely.

The thought of Ryou summoning me here instead of Joan crossed my mind, and the discomfort must have come off as something else on my face. "I know if you brought your friends here too, it is for something more than we can foresee." He tried to reassure me.

The small curve of his lips as he peered straight into my eyes made my heart flutter. "Yami…" My lips formed his name as I barely managed to speak it. However, after hearing it myself, I snapped out of my daydream. I was supposed to be on a date with Yuugi. My eyes darted away as I began to try to form sentences. "You're probably right. Ishizu said something like that." I gave a small laugh as my eyes returned to his. "Even though I don't have an item, my other soul gives me some powers in this world, like how you can win any duel if Yuugi summons you out." I figured this information was all right to share.

How wrong I was. His eyes widened at me, his smile gone from his features. "How do you kn-" Suddenly, Yami was pushed forward; his lips crashing into mine, silencing him mid-sentence. Our waitress had come by with our food, placed it quietly on the table without our notice, and had reached for my far glass to fill it with more water. It had been at this point the blonde had lost her balanced and shoved Yami straight into me. I could vaguely hear her apologizing,

The sudden attachment of our lips had shocked us both, as we stared at the other for a fleeting second. My eyes closed themselves, a part of my brain telling me this had to be a dream. To my surprise, his warm, soft lips pressed more into mine, one hand softly cradling my face as his free arm wrapped around me, pulling me in closer. His sweet taste filled my senses, beckoning my lips to part under his pressure. Just when I was hoping this accidental kiss might climax, the waitress who caused this event cleared her throat. "Is there…Uh, anything else I can get you?" She asked.

My eyes popped open, Yami released me, and I pushed myself away from him, my cheeks hot with a mix of mortification, excitement, and fury. I knew someone who was not getting a good tip. Stealing a glance at him, I saw Yami wave her away as he avoided my gaze, his pale cheeks red with fiery passion like mine. As she walked away, I noticed he was staring at the floor where she had stood. My heart fell, knowing it was Yuugi he was most likely arguing with. I shook my head to clear it, not yet wanting to forget the moment. "Yami, I…" I started. Unfortunately, by the time my words had escaped, he had already moved back to the other side of the booth.

He divided out the plates, not saying anything as he dug his fork into his pasta. We both ate in silence, as he seemed upset, if not guilty, while staring down at his food. A small amount of red sauce made its way onto his cheek, staining his pale skin. Biting my lip softly, I put down my fork, picked up my napkin, and leaned carefully forward across the table. Yami's orbs flicked to mine as he froze in place, eyeing my movements curiously while I wiped his cheek. I gave him a warm smile, "There you go. You can be a messy eater." I commented with a chuckle, trying to lighten the mood between us.

Yami stared at me as he assessed my words, and then leaned back in his seat, offering me a small beam in return. His deep eyes seemed soft, yet strong, his mature face tilted somewhat downward at me. A sudden thump of my heart made me widen my eyes slightly, feeling woozy. The situation in front of me changed: A dark skinned Yami was giving me that same smile I had just seen and started to laugh in a way I had never heard before. It was out of pure joy. "Rhea?" I heard his low voice rumble, but it was not from the vision before me. I blinked my eyes, the scene returned to the date that I was on. Yami was giving me the same worried look Yuugi had and I realized I had been staring off into space.

If the blush I already had could get brighter, it would have. I placed one hand on my cheek, nodding my head a little. "Yeah, sorry…" I apologized, trying to at least offer him a comforting look. "I think I just need some rest or something." I fibbed.

Yami seemed to see through it, but raised his hand to hail the waitress over. He asked for two boxes, which for him, she quickly retrieved. As soon as he handed me my box, he gave her the money for the bill, adding, "Keep the change" as she turned from us. I just stared at him in wonder as I put my food away. "How did you get the money to afford this anyway?" I asked, taking one more glance around.

Yami returned my look with a remorseful gaze. "Yuugi did what he had to." His somber tone informed me before standing up.

I rose as well, grabbing my things before moving out from my seat. Yami extended his hand to me with his first full smile of the past ten minutes, to which I happily accepted. As we walked out of the restaurant together, despite myself, all I could think of was, _Thank goodness Anzu wasn't the only one who went on a date with Yami. _

**…**

It was still afternoon when Yami walked me home. I was too shy to hold his hand like I had held Yuugi's before. He was quiet while we walked and I could barely take the silence. "Yami, are you surprised that I'm from another world?" I finally blurted out, my voice betraying my nerves.

The Pharaoh did not stop walking, but turned to glance at me before looking back to where he was going. "I feel like you are not the first one I have met in this predicament." He spoke distantly, as if he was trying to remember something.

I loosened my grip slightly, furrowing my eyebrows. "Really?" I asked, but he gave me a wordless answer. I wondered if the true Guardians had anything to do with it. "Don't you think it's strange?" I probed, wondering his response.

Yami finally turned to me for more than just the brief peek. He seemed very serious as he parted his lips. "You will not tell me how you know the fact that I am not Yuugi." He began. I lowered my eyes shamefully. "As long as you alright with that fact, I do not see why I should judge your origins." His tone was filled with that same welcoming feeling that his eyes had once dabbled in.

I chewed on my lower lip as he turned from me again. "What does Yuugi think of me?" I questioned, the fear of rejection more in my pitch than I liked. I wanted to know when I started to care about the young duelist more than the ancient spirit.

The latter came to a halt just outside Mai's house. He offered me a reassuring smile. "I doubt that Yuugi would care where you were from." Yami chuckled out, releasing my hand from his grasp.

I faced him fully, my lips forming a pout that I might have picked up from Bree. "That's not what I meant." I complained, almost childishly. He merely smirked down at me, slowly closing the gap between us. His lips began to form my name, when he abruptly stopped, a mere few inches from me. Between us, the Millennium Puzzle began to glow softly, and Yami's eyes widened in an alarmed manner. There, where he once towered over me, stood Yuugi at my eye level. I started to back away, afraid that this boy might be mad at me. "Yuugi…" I whispered softly. I did not want him hurt because I had turned Yami into my date instead of him.

Quickly, he snatched up my hand, interlocking our fingers firmly as he stared straight into my eyes. "It's okay." He spoke softly, lifting his fingers from his free hand to gently touch the watch he gave me. "I was there today, Rhea." He said as if he had read my mind. His voice was soothing and reassuring. I calmed myself slowly, moving back to my close position I had with him. It was that subtle movement he needed to sweep his arm about me and pull me to him in a loving embrace.

My head fit cozily in the crook of his neck, my hand unclasping with his so I could reach my arms up to ensnare his shoulders. His head pulled back at my touch, his eyes diving deep into my own, seeming to be taking me in wholly at that moment. Then, he began to lean in.

I knew exactly what was about to happen: the kiss I had yearned for. My body stilled itself as I closed my eyes, feeling warm breath tickle my lips as I steadily moved towards that last ten percent to close the space between us. It was at the very last moment that a voice rang out beside us. "Rhea. Yuugi." It said in a greeting tone. In one swift movement, we unbound each other, practically jumping back as the moment had been taken from us. There stood Ishizu, looking between the two of us with a rather blank expression.

Even with my heartbeat pounding against my eardrums, my shocked voice was still clear to me. "Ishizu! What are you doing here?" My eyes moved from her to Yuugi, who was now looking away, his flustered expression hidden from the lady.

The Egyptian woman stole a look up at the apartment. "I came to speak with Mai in person." She wore the same outfit that I had met her in, which I could only guess was one of the few things she did wear. She did have a brown messenger bag, which she reached into, and pulled out a sealed envelope. She showed me the front of it, displaying that it was addressed to Mai in informal handwriting.

Finally, my heart slowed itself. I gave her a short nod, "Mai should be here." I confirmed with a small sigh. "I'll let you in." My eyes flickered back to Yuugi, his expression a mix of anger and defeat. I knew how he felt. All I could offer him was an apologetic look. "I'll see you at school tomorrow?" As much as I had wanted it to come out as a statement, my words fell out like a question.

His amethyst eyes met with mine, seeming to perk up a little at the thought of seeing me again tomorrow. "Of course." He said, forcing a smile. It broke my heart a little to see it. He turned, starting to walk away.

He had gotten a few steps away before I burst. "Yuugi, wait." I called after him, causing him to stop. I darted to him, and as he turned to face me, my lips brushed gently against his cheekbone. He blinked a few times before processing what I had done. His flushed face turned even brighter red. "Take care." I smiled as I skipped back towards the waiting woman.

I could feel him staring at the back of my head for a moment, before I heard his faint mumbles. I was unsure of who he was talking to: me, Yami, or himself. I knew it was not enough for either of us, but I hoped it made him happier.

As I let Ishizu inside the door, she pursed her lips before asking, "Did I disturb something?" She seemed to honestly not realize the full extent of what she had stopped.

Her words made me pause momentarily, but I shook my head as a response to her question. "No," I lied, not wanting her to know about my date yet. A small smile played on my lips as I remembered his expression. As the door behind us closed, I raised my finger to my lips, hoping the new day might give me new chances.

**…**

Kinakao: Before anyone blames me, it is not my fault.

All Guardians: Yeah it is.

Kinakao: Anyways! Just so you guys know, I'll be working super busy on the chapters so you guys will get two chapters for the Thanksgiving holiday! One for here, one in the Secret Chapters. So, please keep reviewing and hope to see you all next time!


	18. The Final Stroke of Midnight

Kinakao: Hello, hello! I hope everyone is ready for the break!

Daida: But things are just getting started.

Bree: Yeah! I just got to go on my date!

Kinakao: Yes, Bree's date is up in the Secret Chapters, so if you have been waiting for it, it's there!

Joan: Well, let's get it started then. Kinakao does not own YuGiOh or any of it's characters or places. She does own the Guardians and things associated with it.

All: Enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 18: The Final Stroke of Midnight

As Mai set the tea on the table in front of Ishizu, she glanced at me to see if I wanted any. I shook my head before heading back to my room. I did not shut the door before flopping down on my bed, allowing their voices to waft in. The first I heard was Ishizu. "Mai Valentine." She stated formally. "I thought you would be on a cruise boat." She seemed completely serious.

However, Mai's tone was lighthearted. "Nah, I gave up those days to live in Domino." I could almost hear her shrug. I did hear the envelope exchange hands. "Why are you doing this for her anyways?" Mai asked, her tone bewildered.

Ishizu spoke crisply. "Because Rhea is important to us." I knew she was still unable to see my future, but I guessed she meant for my friends and to save the world.

Mai put her cup down with a small clink of the china. "She is important to me as well." She said with sternness that I only heard when she was dueling. "Ishizu, do you know anything about her parents?"

That is when the beige phone next to me began to ring. I stared at it for a moment, and half way through the third ring, the receiver was pulled to my ear. "Valentine residence." I answered.

"Is my sister there?" A male voice came over the line. I gasped and dropped the phone. Marik Ishtar was calling my house. "Hello?" I heard him speak through the line after my silence.

I gathered the courage to pick it back up. "What do you want?" My voice was venomous, on guard due to the unstable villain.

His voice sounded weary rather than angry at my disobedience. "Look, is Ishizu there? I need her help." He hushed his tone as he whispered into the headset. "Those girls are driving me crazy…They keep trying to get me to play video games and attempt to dress me up." He gave out a pleading sigh.

I blinked. "Daida and Cleo?" The disbelief in my voice must have been the cue to Marik.

"You know them?" He questioned quickly. "Are you Rhea?" Realization hit his words and I flinched when he said my name. Then his speech was rushed and quiet. "They're coming back. Please tell Ishizu to come home now." Immediately after his plead, the line went dead.

I lowered the phone, staring at it, completely baffled. Marik had used the word 'please.' _What the hell has happened to the timeline?_ I questioned silently, rubbing my eyes. I lifted myself from the bed to walk over to the kitchen, tiptoeing through the hall. After going a few steps, I stood just outside the room the two women were seated, catching only the last bit of what Ishizu was saying. "…There is always something more than meets the eye."

My heart began to race. I could not tell if she was telling Mai about the Guardians, or warning her for some reason about me. I wondered what she had said about my parents. However, there was no use in asking right now. I cleared my throat as I walked into the room. Both pairs of eyes shot up at me. "Marik called." I spoke as evenly as I could. "He needs you home." I added as I looked towards the hallway.

Ishizu stood, pushing her chair away from the table. "I was just about ready to go." She turned to Mai, giving her a small bow of traditional respect. "Thank you for talking with me." Her eyes flashed to me. "Take care." She echoed my words to Yuugi. She let herself out, not even glancing back to us as the door shut.

My attention turned to Mai as she picked up the plates. "There's still some tea on the stove." She spoke almost in a motherly tone. "Don't forget to do your homework tonight." She began to wash the cups in the sink.

I gave out a small sigh. Even in a new world, I still had my student responsibilities. I nodded, deciding to skip on the tea today, and returned to my room wordlessly. Time to resume my reality of an average Domino High school girl, just like the rest of my friends.

**…**

Ishizu walked briskly back to her home, which was only a stone throw's away from the museum. As she arrived to the wooden door, she inserted the key, hearing the small click of the lock that allowed her entry. The access opened wide to an unexpected scene.

The floor was covered with a mix of clothes, ranging from skirts to dresses to frilly items Ishizu could not identify. The television in the front room was still on the loading screen of a game the girls had recently bought, something to the effect of everlasting Sonata. Ishizu silently closed the door behind her, creeping through the rooms. The kitchen appeared to still be intact as well as the hallway.

It was when she approached the middle room, the one that Daida had been staying in, she heard voices just beyond the door. She pressed open the entrance, letting it open wide. There, in the center of this room, stood Ishizu's three housemates: Daida and Cleo were on either side of a person she assumed was Marik in a tug-of-war style, each grasping one of his arms. Marik, halfway dressed in a frilly pink skirt, with makeup done prettily on his eyes seemed incredibly panicked. The lipstick he wore was smeared beyond his thin lips. He still had his purple vest-like shirt on, but it appeared that a pair of strap heels had been glued to his feet.

At the sight of the Egyptian woman, hope shined in the dark skinned boy. "Sister! Thank Ra you're here!" He called out.

Daida and Cleo seemed to ignore all of his words and were even oblivious to Ishizu's presence. "What…" She started, stifling a laugh, "is going on...?" She asked slowly, finally triggering the notice of the two girls.

Before either one could speak, Marik struggled against them, still crying out to the woman for assistance. "Help me! They knocked me out and tried me to enact evil scriptures. Something called a…" He seemed to struggle for the word. "A 'fan fiction.'" He sneered at the very essence of the sentence.

Ishizu gave out a sigh, equally puzzled by this term. She shook her head, bringing a hand up to rub her temple. She was glad she had never foreseen this, since it was traumatizing enough witnessing it in person. She closed the door behind her, the two girls now fearing the punishment they faced.

**…**

The next day at school seemed to go pretty normal. There were a few things off: Yuugi was giving me more smiles than usual, Bree was collapsed on her desk, bandages in hand, Seto was absent, and Daida and Cleo had bags under their eyes. At our break, I figured it was best to ask. "So…Why are you and Cleo so tired?" I questioned Daida, who had her arms crossed on her desk with her head down.

She peeked up at me, yawning as she sat up. "Ishizu had us cleaning the whole house all night." She reached into her bag for a caffeinated mint. "Apparently torturing Marik is a no-no." She popped the mint into her mouth, crunching it sleepily.

I recalled the phone call, nodding slowly. I did not want to know. I lifted my hand to brush back black locks and the shine of my watch caught Daida's eye. She reached over and grabbed my wrist, inspecting my new accessory. "Wow…This is gorgeous, Rhea!" The blonde gushed. She looked around and called to the other Guardians. "Hey guys, come look!" She smiled brightly, seeing how her mint had already taken effect on her mood.

I blushed before glancing to Yuugi, who seemed pleased at the reaction of our friends, but remained silent. Cleo took her chance to move away from Otogi to come to us. Joan reluctantly left Ryou's side to come peer over my shoulder, while Bree hobbled over to take a peek. Cleo blinked at the redhead. "What happened to you?" She asked, only a drop of concern hitting the question.

Bree moved to sit on Daida's desk to rest her feet. "I will forever believe a girl is sexy and brave if she can walk across town in high heels." She spoke in a hushed, but serious, tone, so only the Guardians would hear.

I cocked an eyebrow. "I guess your date didn't go well." I chuckled as Bree lowered her sock apply a new band-aid to her blisters.

"I got what I wanted from Seto."

Joan perked up. "You went on a date with Kaiba?" She asked, her shocked face mirrored by Daida and Cleo.

Bree nodded, unphased, and pointed to me. "She went on a date with Yuugi yesterday!" She spoke loudly, gathering more attention.

By this point, the group had grown larger to include Yuugi, Joey, Honda, Anzu, Ryou, and Otogi. I glared at Bree for ratting me out, but I suppose it was only fair since I had brought up her date. "Yeah, I did." I admitted, my gaze moving to the mentioned boy as he moved behind me, next to Joan. "He gave it to me." I added, hoping it was alright to tell them.

There was a moment of silence as I watched nine pairs of eyes move from the watch, to Yuugi, to me, back to the watch. "What?" They exclaimed in unison. I blushed furiously as I retracted my hand.

However, I was not fast enough. Bree pulled my wrist up to her, inspecting it next to Joey. The two of them looked up with serious faces. "You mugged Kaiba, didn't you?" They accused in unison.

Both Yuugi and I spluttered for words, our faces an equal shade of crimson. Yuugi was the one who managed to speak as he shut his eyes, clenching his fists. "I did **not **mug Kaiba." He spoke firmly, opening his eyes when he was done speaking.

Honda scratched his cheek, "So, how did you afford such an expensive watch then?" He seemed curious, almost as if he wanted to know the way to make quick money. I hoped it would at least be for a gift for Serenity.

Yuugi looked sadly down at me, reluctant to expose his funding. "I…" He put his hands together. "I sold a few of my cards and worked a more hours for my Grandpa for the money." He seemed almost ashamed to give away his secret.

I whipped around to look him in the eye. "Your deck?" I could never forgive myself if he gutted his dueling deck to buy me something.

He shook his head, rising up his hands quickly. "No, of course not." He spoke quickly. "Extra cards I had, some rare, some not." He nodded, giving me a reassuring smile, to tell me it was okay.

Anzu's blue eyes looked sadly at my watch. "I'd wish someone would do that for me someday." She gave a soft sigh.

Bree took this chance to part away from Joey, relinquish my hand, and to pick up Anzu's soft fingers instead. The redhead stroked the brunette's digits gently, her grey eyes staring hard and deep into Anzu's ocean ones. "If I had the chance, I would do anything for you." Her voice dropped to a lower tenor, making her almost sound like a boy. Even the way she held herself made her seem manly, compared to the girlish female we had all known.

The dancer's face flushed with confusion, averting her eyes as she tried to find the right words to approach this situation. All of the Guardians were internally screaming at the Air elemental, _What are you doing? _However, Cleo managed to gain control of the condition by moving to Bree, grabbing her by the collar, and dragging her back to her seat. "Come on, the teacher's coming." Her pitch was scolding, while the other girl struggled against the drag.

The remaining three put our head in our hands, groaning. Ryou gently grasped Joan's free hand, tilting his head back towards their desks. "We should at least look like we're working." He teased in his accented voice.

Joan nodded, only showing a slight pink hue on her cheeks, as she leaned down to whisper to me. "Try to make sure Bree doesn't do anything stupid." Her serious words fell on me like a warning. I turned to look at her, but she was giving me a frivolous wink as she walked away.

Joey rubbed the back of his head, shrugging as he walked back to his seat next to Daida. "Yeah, well, don't sell too many more of yer cards, Yuugi. I still want to trade with you to improve my deck." He gave the shorter boy a thumbs' up behind Daida and my backs.

Honda put his hands on his hips. "So does this mean you and Rhea are…?" He lifted a hand, rotating it to find the right word. However, Otogi noticed out of the corner of his eye Anzu, who seemed to be displeased with Honda's conclusion. The dicemaster grabbed his arm, cutting his thought. "We should go ahead and leave them be." He spoke, and then pulled Honda away to their desks.

Otogi started to preoccupy his friend's time with talking about how they could find presents for the person they wanted. Anzu glanced at me and bit her lip, dying to ask the question just on the tip of her tongue. However, the teacher opened the door to the classroom right when she parted her lips to speak. With a frustrated moan, she turned elegantly from me and returned to her seat next to the resident airhead.

I gave a small sigh, glad I did not have to answer Honda's question. I honestly did not know where I was in Yuugi's heart. My eyes shifted to him, but he was already taking notes. I returned my hues to my paper, starting to take notes myself.

**…**

As the class progressed, a folded note landed on the corner of my desk. I blinked at the hand written name on the cover. It was addressed to me. I looked to Yuugi, who was paying a little too close attention to his pen stroke then usual. My experience with notes from characters of this world made me hesitate, but curiosity got the best of me. I grabbed it, opening the folds, revealing the letter.

_Rhea, _

_I know Ishizu interrupted the last part of our date. But I think we need to talk alone, without our other halves around. Meet me behind the school as soon as we get out. _

_Yuugi_

I refolded the note, keeping my eyes on the table. I could almost sense Yuugi shifting uncomfortably in his desk. Hope appeared next to me, her gold skirt and cape fluttering about her. _"If you would like privacy, I can seal myself in my soul room until you need me." _She spoke gently, as if her presence would startle me.

My eyes moved to her. _What if it's a trap? _My question held all of the worry that my voice would have.

Hope nodded. _"I know you are afraid." I am not afraid. _I cut her off. She crossed her arms over her chest. _"But if you need anything, I will be there." _Hope ignored my comment with her comforting words.

I gave out a sigh. _Always? _I asked her, looking up hopefully.

Hope gave me a small smile. _"As long as you need me, Rhea." _She vanished from where she stood, the symbol on my chest heating up as she bound herself inside me. It was not a discomfort, but almost assuring me that she was a part of me. My eyes laid on Yuugi, who was giving me a nervous watch.

My gaze turned cheery as I nodded, agreeing to our arrangement.

**…**

The school bell rang, the gaggle of people leaving the classroom in a rush. Daida gathered her bag and looked to me. "So, Rhea, you heading out to the meeting place today?" She cocked an eyebrow, reminding me about Guardian practice.

I bit my lip and decided to lie. "Oh, sorry, I can't today. Mai needs me to run errands." I noticed Yuugi had already left with Joey and Honda. "Besides, I can't practice anyway." I justified my absence.

Daida gave me a stern look, almost able to see through the fib. "Who will take charge then?" She asked, knowing I could lasso in Bree if I had to.

I beamed at her. "I know you can do a fine job with Joan." I assured her, patting her on the shoulder. She seemed to take this well enough, and waved a goodbye to me. Once she was gone out the door, I followed suit.

**…**

I made my way to the back of the school, making sure no one followed. If anyone besides Yuugi was there, I was ready to run for it. But, to my relief, the spiky hair was present, and in the younger form. He was standing against the wall, keeping watch on both sides, so I caught his glance quickly. Delight spread across his face at my appearance, but melted into an emotion I could not identify. "Rhea, I'm glad I could get this chance with you." He spoke firmly.

I noticed that the Millennium Puzzle was not around his neck. I looked around and saw it on the ground next to him. "You really didn't want to let Yami be around for this, did you?" A small laugh helped my question flow out easier.

Yuugi twitched the edges of his lips. "No, I didn't." He reached out for my hand, which I willingly gave to him. "I hope you had fun on our date." He began, and I felt guilt rising in my stomach. "Everything went how I wanted, but I wanted to be there in person." He downcast his eyes.

I gripped his hands. "Yuugi, I didn't mean for you to not be a part of it." I tried to convince him. "I wanted to tell you everything. I don't even know how you fe-"

"I don't care that you're not from this world." He cut me off sternly. "Rhea, I…" My heart began to race. "You mean everything to me." He managed to breathe out. I felt he might continue with his words, but my thoughts were interrupted.

Yuugi had pulled me close to him, not waiting for anyone to stop us this time. He crashed his lips into mine, wrapping his arms around my waist. I allowed myself to melt into him, my arms reaching up around his shoulders, caressing his neck softly. His hands crept up my back, keeping a strong hold on me. My lips parted, letting warm air pass between our bodies to heat up the moment.

We kept our skin touching, tongues snaking around each other. The symbol above my heart grew bright, the arrows now moving rapidly in a circle. I could feel a surge of energy, which I put further into this magical moment.

**…**

A chuckle erupted from a hooded man. "Finally! The time is now!" He moved towards the edge of the large, dark, looming tower, overlooking the city of Domino and the forest where the Guardians were practicing. He could see two sparkling lights in the city, which made his smile turn into a crazed grin.

**…**

Bree: Okay. I'm not looking.

Daida: Still adding romance to it?

Kinakao: I hope this chapter will get some reviews, and I hope you all will be excited for the upcoming chapters.

So, from everyone here at Konnichiwa, Sayonara, have a Happy Thanksgiving, or just a good weekend for those in other countries! Please review!


	19. To Save Two Souls

Kinakao: So! We're back!

Everyone: Took you long enough!

Kinakao: Yes, yes! Well, belated Happy Holidays to everyone and a splendid New Year!

Daida: I can't wait for my new resolution!

Kinakao: Yes, I have several, which one is to be better with my deadlines, including with my story! So, without further ado, here is Mako Tsunami to do our introduction!

Mako: Hello everyone! My beautiful Sea and I tell you that Kinakao does not own YuGiOh, any of it's characters, or places! But she does own the Guardians and everything about them.

Everyone: The Freaky Fish Guy?

Mako: Stop calling me that!

Enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 19: To Save Two Souls

"Joan, are you okay?"

Deep within the woods, the Guardians had found their secluded place for practicing. Pushing themselves harder than before to discover their true abilities, all of them were starting to feel a little weak, even though they had just begun their session. In the middle of conjuring a fireball, Joan had let out a piercing cry of pain when she doubled over, crisscrossing her arms in front of her body to clench at her sides. Her head hung low as the fire disintegrated into embers around her; the four girls restrained their own powers, worried for their friend. It was Daida who moved the quickest to the fallen comrade. "What's wrong, Joan?" She asked as she knelt down next to her, extending a hand out to Joan.

"Don't touch her!" Cleo's words sliced the air between Daida and Joan, making the Water Guardian flinch. The aura around their friend was no longer the same as it had been, and Cleo could see it as clear as day. She began to try and run faster to pull Daida away from her. "That's not Joan!"

But Cleo's warning was too late. Joan's once dark eyes flashed a shocking shade white as she lifted her face to stare blindly at the Guardian in front of her, a twisted grin curled across her lips. Blue flames lit the ground in a circle around the Fire Guardian, creating a barrier of fire between her and everyone else. A blasting shockwave erupted from these flames, throwing Daida back several yards, creating a wall of white-hot flames to bar their sight of the girl once known as Joan. Cleo managed to stand her ground, grabbing Daida as she turned back to drag her farther away from the danger. Bree came up from behind them, holding herself in mid-air. "Get down!" She warned Cleo, the Air Guardian sweeping her hands as she sent powerful gusts of air towards the flames.

The wind whipped away the licking flames, reducing them to mere embers. The grass showed its scars of a burnt circle as it revealed a transformed Joan. Her eyes were completely white, black lines crept up her cheek bones, her skin was a grayish color, and her short brown hair flared out in spikes behind her. On her back were large shining white wings. They only allowed themselves to be seen for a moment, before becoming transparent against the background. A chuckle escaped her lips, her seemingly sightless eyes turning towards the sky. In that instant, she was engulfed by the flames once more. However, these died down without Bree's assistance, leaving an empty spot where Joan once stood.

As Cleo tended to Daida's burns and scrapes, Bree ran to the spot where the Fire Guardian once stood. Her head hung low as she inspected the circle around her, her hands balling into tight fists. Once coming to her conclusion, she thrust her chin upwards, her grey eyes scanning the clouds for any hope. "We have to stop her." She spoke softly. "Rhea, please be careful."

**…**

After a few more minutes of enjoying Yuugi's soft lips, we finally pulled apart reluctantly. My cheeks matched his ruby red embarrassed face, making me smile sweetly to him. "I didn't expect that." I admitted, sounding impressed by his actions. He took this chance to return the smile.

He allowed my release from his arms, but I found myself unmoving, even when he dropped his arms to his sides. "I'd been dreaming about that for a while." He spoke almost casually. I cocked an eyebrow at him, feeling he was perhaps exaggerating, but his face told me he was serious. I silently wished I could have dreams like his more often.

I leaned forward to rest my head on his shoulder, closing my eyes as I took just a swift moment to take in his scent. Hints of sweetness mixed with his shower gel floated up to me. "Yuugi…I…" I started, trying to push the words out as easily as they came to me in my head, but the syllables were too hard to come by. He noticed the struggle and placed a hand behind my head, stroking my hair softly to comfort me. "I know." He spoke sweetly to me, almost assuring me that I did not have to say it right now. It was not enough for me. I wanted to shout it to both worlds.

"Yuugi, I lo—"

A white hot fire suddenly appeared a few feet from us, cutting my words short as I shielded my face from the flame with my arm. It swirled around the spot on the grass, reaching to at least six foot in height. The heat seemed to intensify, causing me to pull myself away from Yuugi and press against the wall behind me, both of my arms serving as a barrier. I glanced to my side to see Yuugi doing the same, but he was peering towards the fire. His face was twisted with confusion and shock. "Joan?" His voice bewildered.

Relief and annoyance overcame me. It was only Joan. I lowered my arms to find that the flames were gone. Both emotions faded from me as quickly as they had come when my eyes fell on the transformed state she had become. This changed Joan floated in the air, her head tilted towards Yuugi, her lifeless white eyes staring at him. "_**Thank you for awakening her, Time's Chosen.**_" The voice was distorted, seeming to have three voices melded into one.

Instead of fear, which might have been anyone else's first emotion to this sight, anger filled me. "Joan!" I stepped forward and stared the girl down. "What is going on?" My voice seemed more demanding than my frame could have ever shown.

Her face deadpanned as she twisted her head towards me. She floated closer, coming within a few inches of my face. I felt Yuugi put his hand on my arm, to pull me back, but my feet were planted where I stood. _**"I am not the Fire Guardian Joan, nor the counterpart Ember."**_ Her shadowy voice corrected me, a flicker of anger in those inert eyes. "_**If you want to see them again, you must go to the Domino Square at dusk.**_" Her face moved to look at Yuugi. "_**Alone. Without your Chosen."**_

Fury filled me. "Alright." I agreed, as the word was spit out with conviction. I felt Yuugi's grip tighten on me once the word fell on his ears.

"Rhea, don't." He spoke in the voice that broke my heart. It was the voice that told me he would be the hero, the one to face everything on. I would not let him this time.

"_Rhea, he's right."_ Hope's voice echoed in my head. I could feel the burn of my mark filling with power as she unsealed herself. Her ghostly form floated next to me, her eyes full of concern. _"Don't do this."_ She warned. The white eyes of the creature in front of me seemed to shift slightly, giving a deadly stare to the spot where Hope resided.

I could have sworn I felt her shiver next to me. In the short amount of time that I had known about Hope, I had always found her to be fearless. It did make me wonder what could make her scared. "I will come alone." I ignored my friends' warnings, knowing full well I had no actual choice in the matter. The girl across from me nodded, grinning at Hope with a sickening smile. The floating transmuted brunette pulled away from me and retreated back to the circle, where blue flames shot up, licking the sky, then vanished with her. However, there in the center of the burnt grass were Joan's brass knuckles.

My eyes fell to them, refusing to allow any salt water to fall from my hues. I slipped out of Yuugi's grip to lean down and pick them up. As my fingers curled around them, I heard his voice. "Rhea, what is going on?" He seemed more concerned than I had when I asked those same words. "What did she mean, 'Your chosen?'" With each word, it seemed to fill with more curiosity that I was unsure where to begin. To me, he was hundreds of miles away.

I ran my fingers over the knuckles, feeling the metal's uneven surface. I flipped them around in my hand to find the side of them engraved. The words "To Protect Who You Love" was outlined in elegant letters. I rose up fully, my long dark locks falling in front of my eyes, obscuring them from sight. "I thought I would feel stronger when I met my Chosen." I whispered to myself, placing one hand to the symbol on my chest. It seemed almost hot to the touch. "Yuugi." My voice was a fraction louder. "A Chosen is the partner that a Guardian needs to open her true power." My gaze lifted as I turned to him, meeting with his large, worried, amethyst eyes. It made my heart ache to see him like that now. "My friends and I…Are Guardians of the Worlds." I shaded my voice with seriousness as I confessed to him this one secret.

He seemed stunned, but altogether not completely shocked. He seemed nervous more than anything now. "Am I yours?" He asked softly. "Your Chosen, I mean." I opened my mouth to speak, but he cut me off with a quick, yet serious, "Don't lie" warning.

It almost made me giggle. But I nodded instead, leaning in towards him to peck at his cheek. "I know you've gone through dangerous things." I knew he would not be too surprised at my knowledge, but I knew he would go through worse later on. Images from what I barely remembered as a TV show flashed in my head. "You put your life on the line for your friends. It's my turn to do the same." My words murmured against his cheek before I pulled away. I gave him no chance to object, taking off in a sprint away from the spot where he stood. I would be long gone before he fully realized what even happened. I was speeding off away from the school and from Yuugi. I knew I was running away from everything I cared for.

**…**

"_Why will you not listen to me?_" Hope's question seemed more worried than angry.

My voice contrasted hers. "You said you would only come out if I summoned you." My breath escaped quickly. I was running as fast as I could towards downtown Domino. Hope faced me, her ghostly body almost parallel to the ground as she leaned in the direction of my sprint, our bond pulling her along with me.

"_You don't know what you are dealing with."_ Her voice was serious. Her arms crossed over her ethereal chest.

I did not let up my run, even when my legs tired out. "Joan…" I spoke in between my panting. "Joan risked her life for me." I could feel myself close to needing a break. All of my friends could run as far as the eye could see except for me. I could almost hear the cheering that Joan would give me when we raced. _'Mari, you can do it! Come on! Just breathe!'_ The memory echoed in my head. Joan had always been there for me when I needed her, ever since we were little.

The sun was setting behind the buildings and people were disbursing from the square. I finally allowed my legs rest once they reach a spot in the middle of the square. Shops around were closing up and I realized where I was: The spot I had met Yuugi and Anzu for the first time. I saw myself on the ground, completely embarrassing myself in front of them. I turned to my left and remembered walking along the shops with Daida and Joan. I could see us, so innocent and happy to be in a new world while we were shopping. To my right Yuugi had led me to the restaurant for our date. I could see him dragging me enthusiastically. A dream I never knew would come true. I raised a hand to rest on my chest, right above my beating heart, right as the sun vanished from sight.

A pair of lips brushed against my ear."_** So glad you came**_." Before I even had a chance to turn around, transparent wings wrapped around me. I felt myself slipping into unconsciousness, a small vision of the guardians calling to me before I floated away.

**...**

"Rhea!" Yuugi called out, following my trail. My quick escape had given me a few minutes of head start. "Joan!" He called out as well. He thought that if he could find her as well, he could bring back the both of us. The young duelist heard a small echo of the name 'Rhea' from a place further away. He turned to look down the street seeing the remaining three guardians running towards him." Yuugi" Daida called to him, making the boy stop long enough for them to catch up.

"What happened to your arms?" The boy asked. The blonde's arms were bandaged from the wrist all the way up to her shoulders, the top hidden by pink sleeves."It was Joan, wasn't it?"

"How do you know that?" Cleo asked, surprised by his knowledge.

Yuugi gave a serious look." Rhea and I were together when Joan showed up." He took a moment to assess the reaction, and then continued." But it wasn't Joan exactly. It was like she was possessed."

The three guardians exchanged looks." Yuugi..." Bree spoke, and the most serious tone she ever had. "Where is Rhea now?"

Yuugi met with Bree's grey eyes and knew the worry she felt. "Domino square. She was supposed to go alone." He seemed to have no shame in disobeying the orders of a flame-wielding Joan. The three Guardians seemed to have the same opinion. In full agreement of what to do, all four dashed off towards downtown.

**…**

If only they had arrived a moment sooner.

The skies were darkening on the square, the place practically vacant. As the sun disappeared, Cleo cried out, "There she is!" There, in the middle of the square, stood my body, waiting for my messenger. As they made a rush towards me, they saw large white wings appear from behind me. Joan's face pressed itself against mine while her body was eclipsed by my form as she whispered something they could not hear. As they approached, the wings enveloped the two girls in front of them, the whole bundle becoming translucent before shooting into the sky and disappearing from sight.

Bree slowly walked towards the spot they had once stood, a small sparkle catching her eye on the ground. In front of her feet, was Joan's brass knuckles and Rhea's precious watch. Picking them both up, the Air Guardian looked towards the sky, seeing the looming thunderclouds above."They're gone." Daida's voice seemed to give up. Cleo seemed to be looking around, as if trying to sense their auras, but there was nothing. Yuugi fell to his knees, afraid he lost his love once more.

"What is going on here?" Spoke a familiar voice that had a twinge of an accent. Four faces turned to look at the white haired Bakura. There behind him was also Joey, Anzu, Honda, and Otogi. They shared a worried expression.

Daida was the first jump in."Rhea has been kidnapped." Cleo gave her a stern look, but nodded in agreement. Bree was uncharacteristically silent as she watched the skies. Yuugi came to his feet, but his eyes were downcast.

"By who?" Anzu asked. "To where?"

Cleo lowered her eyes. "Joan."

As the brunette answered question, the clouds erupted in a fit of thunder and lightning. There in the sky, the shadow of a large tower showed itself in the crackling air. When the lightning faded, so did its image from sight. When the sky cracked again, Bree widened her eyes at the tower. Black as night, it stood in front of them. It rose straight into the air, and opened up into a flat surface at the peak near the clouds. There almost seemed to be a Pantheon like structure on the top. "There!" Bree exclaimed, pointing upwards.

The majority of the group was in awe at the sight. Honda, however, failed to see the structure. "What are you talking about, Bree?" He asked, scratching his head.

Joey turned on him. "Whadda mean? You can't see it?" He asked his friend in his irritation. Honda shrugged his shoulders. "You gotta be blind or something." Joey shook his head in disapproval.

"We have to follow them!" Bree commanded, summoning wind that allowed her to float. This made the characters of the world give out a gasp. Bree shook her head. "Quit gawking!" She growled at them before turning towards the other Guardians. "Come on; use your powers to get up there too."

"Wait, Bree." Yuugi touched her ankle, making the Air Guardian glare down at him. "I know you're worried. So am I." He said softly, trying to ease her anger. "Take us with you. We all want to save Rhea." He looked to his friends, who nodded in unison.

Joey gave her an almost goofy grin. "And maybe while you're at it, you can tell us why you're flying?"

Bree softened her expression, looking to all of them. Each one had their own determination to help out their friends. It was not until now that Bree knew how important the Guardians were to the characters they had come to know and love as well. The Air Guardian gave in. "Alright, everyone partner up then." She said, and everyone gave out a cheer.

With Daida injured, Cleo volunteered to watch her as Daida only carried one person. Daida was given Joey and Cleo took Honda and Otogi unwillingly. Bree had Yuugi and Anzu on either side of her, as she turned back to look at her friends. "You ready?" She asked. They agreed with a nod. "One…Two…Three!" On cue, each of the Guardians' eyes glowed. Wind swept up beneath Bree and her passengers, carrying them into the sky as they held onto her hands. Daida pulled out water from the Fountain and created a bubble to surround her and Joey as they floated up behind Bree. Cleo's powers allowed her to break through the pavement to allow a slab of ground float up in following to carry herself and her passengers.

The dice master looked down at the ground and chuckled. "I think you forgot about the hole in the ground." He teased her. She rolled her eyes at him, assuring him she would fix it later.

As they soared into the sky, they all cheered in unison, "Let's go save them!"

**…**

Kinakao: So, next time, we get to see the Dark Tower!

Daida: Next time it is then!

Bree: Can it be soon? Who knows what they are going to do to her!

The Beginning of The End has arrived! Please Review!


	20. The Battle Within

Kinakao: Hello, Hello! Welcome back to Konnichiwa, Sayonara!

Daida: We have two people kidnapped, and all you can say is hello?

Kinakao: Well, one of them you torture on a daily basis…

Bree: Come on, I'll do the intro! Kinakao doesn't own YuGiOh or any of its characters or places. She does own all of the Guardians, the dark tower, Dardanos, Shara….is that everyone?

Cleo: I think so…

Bree: So, let's get this shindig going!

_A/N: I had this chapter reviewed by my friend and wonderful beta Apherion. She is the reason you all are able to get this chapter one time._

Enjoy!

**…**

Chapter 20: The Battle Within

It was that lukewarm darkness again, something I had grown so familiar with in this world. I could feel my back against a solid surface, alerting me to my new place. Closed lids fluttering open, I found myself in the middle of my soul room. It seemed different than before, almost distorted. Darkened walls sucked the light and warmth from the area. I slowly rose to my feet, my eyes scanning for anyone else. "Hope?" I called. My only answer was the creaking of the door, making me nearly jump out of my skin as I twirled to face it. Tiptoeing my way to it, I stuck my head out into the hallway. There, the adjacent room that had once been covered in chains was now free from its bonds. It rested slightly ajar, almost inviting me in. I stepped towards it, reaching out to press my way further in. There, I was greeted by a blinding golden light, causing me to recoil back into a wall, my eyes shutting tightly.

As I felt the glow ebb away, my eyes opened to a new scene entirely. I was in a dark room, with only a little moonlight floating in from a high window. A groan escaped my lips; my head was heavy and body weak. I felt my back pressed up against cool wood, my muscles relaxed as I noticed my seated position. I rose a hand up towards my face, hearing the clinking of chains and the resistance against my wrist. My eyes darted down, seeing my forearm bound to the arms of a solid wooden chair. I tried to move my feet, but shackles cut into my ankles at my attempts. It was then I took a notice that I was also in different clothing than my uniform. I was now in a long golden dress that covered my feet in soft silk. Sleeves started part way down my arms, and ran all the way to my wrists, except for the extended part that covered the tops of my hands, held in place by a loop string around my middle fingers. When moving my head, I heard small tinkling of jewelry in my hair. I rolled my eyes upward, catching a small sliver of gold against my black bangs. My neck felt heavy with golden necklaces that made up for my bare shoulders and the low cut dip in the cloth. I also felt an odd breeze against my stomach, as if a diamond shape had been removed from the dress in front of my bellybutton. "What the…" My voice was coarse.

"Good. You're awake." A male voice spoke to me, sending a shiver up my spine. It was that voice of the man who had attacked me. The room allowed the sound to echo, and I was unable to know where it came from.

A small growl escaped my lips with my words. "Alright, enough of hiding in the shadows." I tried to remember how he had gotten a hold of me. The last thing I remembered was standing in Domino Square, and then… "Who are you? Where is Joan?" I called out, fighting against my restrains enough to make my seat rattle.

A chuckle emerged from the darkness. "Me?" He asked, toying with me. Suddenly, a spark of fire lit a candle on the far edge of the room, seeming to be several yards away. From that light, a whirlwind of fire traced the outside edges of the room, showing the actual size of my prison. It was a large rectangular room. There were pillars along the walls with candles on either side. There were several doors, each one inscribed with a language I could not identify. The room itself was a golden color, and I realized what I was sitting in: A throne room.

Across from me, where I had seen the first candle, stood my friend in her current state. My heart clenched as I saw her contorted features staring in my direction, white eyes hungry for blood. "I am surprised you don't remember me." My head twisted to my right, to see the source of the voice. There stood a man in a dark cloak with a hood covering his face. After receiving a sneer from me, he lowered the hood to reveal a youthful looking man with long dark hair that was pulled back into a loose ponytail. His dark eyes seemed to almost pierce my soul. "Ultamaiden." He purred the title.

I turned my face from him. "I don't know what you are talking about." I spoke stubbornly. "I've never heard of this 'Ultamaiden' ever before. You must have the wrong person." My eyes peered back through my dark locks, slicing him to sheds mentally. "So let me and Joan go." My tone was more threatening than I could back up.

He merely laughed at me as he stepped closer. "You forget so easily? It was only a few millennia ago…" His smirk turned from playful to evil, giving him an insane quality to his face. "What was your name again…Hope, isn't it? How could you forget your title so easily?" He seemed almost manic by the time he approached me.

Most of my bark was gone now, as I leaned away from him in my chair. "I'm not Hope!" I snapped at him. "How do you even know her? Who are you?" My questions seemed to remind him of some sanity.

He cleared his throat, leaning over me with a more calm expression. "Not Hope?" He murmured, almost gently in my ear. "Yes, you would be the new host…" He seemed to speak more to himself than me at this point. "My name is Dardanos." He finally spoke once his attention was back on me. His eyes darted to the figure that was approaching us, blank eyes only on the man. "You've met my lovely servant, Shara."

The female who had overtaken Joan twitched her lips slightly. "_**Your friend is gone."**_ Shara spoke in her distorted voice. She slinked behind Dardanos, running her fingers over his shoulders. _**"Isn't that right Master?"**_

Rage fueled my actions as I struggled against my bonds. "You're lying!" I accused, the chains cutting into my wrists further.

Dardanos chuckled as he leaned back and away from me. "Don't struggle, girl. Those chains are infused with dark magic that even you cannot break." He moved in front of me, leaving behind his servant who perched herself behind my chair. "But, it is true." He sighed, the twisted grin plastered against his features. "You see, when I tried to infuse Shara's essence into you, your friend got in the way. So, now she has been consumed by her, body and soul." He waved his hand about as he explained the situation, as if it was almost frivolous to him.

I stared at him, thinking back to when he had attacked me. I had been knocked into the alley, away from my friends. Then, Joan had stepped in front when he tried to strike. I knew it had to be then. I widened my eyes. "How could I have been so blind…?" I murmured to myself. All this time she had been suffering, being devoured, and I never knew. My eyes narrowed at him. "Why would you do that? Why even try for me?" I spoke loudly, trying not to burst out yelling at him.

"Because I want your power." He spoke darkly. I felt fingernails brush against my cheek from a disembodied hand hanging on the back of the throne. I shut my eyes tightly. I wondered where Hope was. She was not responding to any of this. I wondered if it was because of my restraints. "Give me your power over time, and I will make you my Queen." He extended a hand to me, giving me a vicious smile.

"Never."

He was on me faster than I could have imagined. Fingers curled around my neck, pressing delicate skin to the wooden backing. Air became a very limited resource. "You will give me that power, or I will torture each and every one of your friends until their souls are reduced to nothing. " He threatened, his dark eyes narrowing. I could feel his hot breath on my cheek.

I struggled for words. "I…can't…use the powers…"I choked. I gasped for air to try and force out more. "Only Hope can…"

His grip became tighter, the darkness slowly setting in. "You lie. I know it is the host who holds the power of time once meeting with their Chosen." His eyes flicked up to Shara, knowing full well she had seen me with Yuugi. His free hand wandered down to the symbol on my chest, his fingernail cutting into it. "The proof is right there. Now give me that power…" His eyes seemed to suck the very soul out of me.

I gave a small nod against his hand, signaling my agreement. A wicked smile crossed his features as he released me from his iron grip. Air rushed back into my lungs. "I…can't." I breathed. Anger struck his face. "Not in these chains." I amended, looking down at my shackles. This was apparently the only thing I needed to say. He snapped his fingers and my bonds were broken. Suddenly, next to me, Hope appeared. Her ghostly form seemed to draw the interest away from me and towards her.

"_What have you done…"_ Hope spoke shakily, her eyes wide on me.

My face withdrew all emotion as I stood up, shaking off the chains. "How do I give this power to you?" I asked, ignoring her pleas. Hope was saying something to the effect of that I did not know who I was dealing with and to let her be in control. But, if I could give him my power, then no one else would be hurt. I would be able to stay here with my friends without anyone ever chasing us again. I could not bear to lose another Guardian.

Dardanos seemed to ignore Hope as well, the surprise of even seeing her beyond me now. "Just give in to me." He chuckled and moved within an inch of my trembling body. For all my fear seemed to express itself in the small tremors racing across my skin. I knew what I wanted, but it was still frightening. He slinked an arm around my waist, pulling me to him. "Give me your heart, and your powers will be mine." His handsome features smoothed out at my compliance. The hunger in his black eyes beamed down at me as he began to move in, like a snake about to suffocate its prey.

**…**

"What do you mean we're stopping here?" Honda exclaimed as they arrived on the top of the tower.

Cleo landed the stone on the surface just next to the large pantheon structure in front of them. The whole place seemed to be made of granite, and had large pillars to hold up the roof. There were intricate designs along the walls, some too fine to even make out from a short distance. "We're here at the top, so of course we're stopping." She said coolly, resisting the urge to roll her eyes.

Otogi jumped down from the block, landing smoothly on the black tower. He turned and offered his hand to Cleo. "Come on, man. It's just a tower." He did shoot Cleo a sweet smile. The Earth Guardian could not refuse any long. She rolled her eyes before taking his hand and jumping down to the surface. Once she planted her feet, she quickly pulled her hand away.

Honda began to panic more intensely. "Dude, you are freaking floating. In the sky." He seemed to try and grow louder with each word, but his fear was stifling his voice. "There is nothing under your feet!" He finally blurted out.

By now, the other two groups had made their way onto the platform. Bree gently set her two passengers down, while Daida popped the bubble she and Joey were in when they touched down. Anzu batted her cerulean eyes, placing her forefinger and thumb on her chin. "You really can't see anything, Honda?" She asked aloud. The mentioned boy nodded furiously.

Joey looked down at Daida. "So, yer telling me that you all are Guardians between worlds and you're here to save this one?" Daida agreed silently. A chuckle emerged from the blonde boy's lips. "Hey, Yuugi, I thought that was our job and all." He teased the younger boy.

However, Yuugi was not amused at the moment. "It still might be if we don't get to Rhea soon." He said, turning towards the tower.

Honda was shakily getting off the earth that Cleo had carried them all on. "Anyone care to explain why I can't see this thing?" He yelled, trying to get their attention back to him.

Cleo helped him down, making sure he got his footing correctly. "Honda…Your aura is different than ours." She said gently, trying to calm him. "Maybe only certain people are allowed to see it." She nodded, offering him a small smile. "Here." She gave her hand to him, allowing her to lead, so Honda would not worry about missteps. He took it with gratitude. Cleo only noticed out of the corner of her eye the sudden anger in Otogi's aura.

Bree had already run to the building and had found a door that she barely managed to forced in. "Come on, guys! Over here!" She grunted as she pushed the heavy stone away. She wished so dearly that she was a guy at the moment, wanting to be stronger than the frail female form. However, her voice had been loud enough to garner everyone's concentration, to which they darted inside.

They found themselves in a large throne room like area. There, across the room, they saw in front of the lavish royal setting was Rhea and an unknown man. He was leaning in to her, her face showing neither joy nor fight. "Rhea!" They cried out, trying to stop the train wreck they were about to witness.

**…**

The word bounced against the walls, barely reaching my ears as Dardanos' lips brushed against mine. My eyes clamped themselves shut, my mind racing, lamenting. _I'm so sorry Yuugi…I'm sorry Hope…everyone…_ I apologized. My name seemed so far away, I could have sworn I was imagining it. Dardanos' touch was like fire, setting me ablaze in pain. His hand dug into my side and I heard Shara growl. My eyes snapped open in time to see Shara bound over Dardanos and me to get in front of my friends. My hands flew up to press against his chest, pushing him away while his grip on me strengthened.

Shara hissed at the group, causing the non-Guardians to flinch. However, Bree stepped in front. "Joan, I swear…" She muttered, conjuring two miniature whirlwinds in the palms of her hands. Her grey eyes darted to Yuugi. "You guys go get her away from that guy." She commanded. Yuugi and Anzu nodded, taking with them Ryou, Joey, Honda, and Otogi.

The six ran up the side wall, trying to pass by Shara. Her white eyes turned to the group, flames erupting in a blast towards them. From Shara's blindside, the side of her face burst into pain, blood pooling along the line that Daida had caused with the crack of a whip made of water. The blonde actually stared wide eyed at her creation, holding one end in her hand. "Wow…I can't believe that worked." She spoke to the weapon. A cry from Shara brought her to focus on the fight.

I could feel myself weakening, finding myself in a predicament that I knew I might not come out of. Hope was screaming at me, telling me to change into her. But, I did not want her to be in this situation as well. My eyes were closing, a cool darkness so very inviting. I was still fighting it, trying to remember how I felt when seeing my friends suffer during the trial. I wondered what power I had awoken just so recently. I feared I might never know.

The sound of a breaking glass cluttered my ears. Then, I was sent hurdling to the ground, landing painfully on my back as I was released. A cry of pain escaped my captor's lips as he whipped around to find Joey, Otogi, and Honda standing behind him, fists at the ready. Anzu was at my side, lifting me up. "Let's go." She whispered, almost dragging me behind her.

I scrambled to my feet, looking at the scene as I left it. There was a vase missing from the side of the throne room, and its remains were scattered around Dardanos. I knew Joey had used it to get him to drop me. My eyes blinked for a moment, the sudden realization that these friends were here. "What are you doing here? How did you…" My voice trailed off. The reassuring smile on her face made my heart drop.

"We know everything, Rhea. We want to help." She nodded, finally leading me to a door that had taken both Ryou and Yuugi to push open. I could see the clouds outside, freedom awaiting us.

However, I was more aware of the presence of the two boys. "Yuugi!" I exclaimed, my voice catching his notice. His amethyst eyes were determined and strong, but seemed softer as he glanced at me. He nodded, knowing there was not much time for our escape.

"Come on, you freaky hood guy!" Joey taunted, smirking. He seemed to almost enjoy the idea of a fight about to commence, as if he was at the school yard again as a bully. Honda seemed to be relishing in that same pleasure, even as he did his best not to look down.

Dardanos wanted to take the bait, but realized that I was now gone from sight. He turned, seeing Anzu and I's attempt to flee. "Enough, mortals!" He roared. The door that Yuugi and Ryou worked so hard to open shut instantly, and the floor beneath the two boys disappeared. In that moment, they fell into a dark hole, which sealed the instant they passed through. My eyes widened, my feet stumbling to the spot they had been standing. I turned in time to see the same happen to the three beside Dardanos. "No!" I cried out.

By now, the fight between the Guardians and Shara had grown more intense. She had managed to burn part of Bree's arm with a fireball that had only barely missed. Daida continued to fight off the intense heat by whipping away fire, but her supply of power was quickly evaporating. With hardly any Earth around, Cleo had been forced to use the transportation as a shield from fiery attacks. As Shara charged at Cleo, the Earth Guardian shoved the piece of land forward to use as a bind around the girl. It wrapped up Shara quickly, forming a block that exposed nothing but her neck and head. A scream of rage filled the Guardian's ears along with the sound of their own hearts beating in their chest.

In the center of the room, tall black bars rose up to the ceiling, creating a cage. A portal opened in the top, producing the five guys, who fell to the floor in a pile. They groaned, but to me, the sight was a relief. But, anger was my first priority. "Let them go, Dardanos!" I yelled, pulling my arm from Anzu's grip as I walked back towards him.

The boys scrambled up to the bars, gripping them tightly, as if trying to break them. Most of them faced the Guardians who were battered and bruised, but Yuugi had tried to pry open the side that faced me. My eyes flickered to him for a moment, his hues begging me to not move any closer to the villain. I ripped my sight from him, locking them back on the black haired man in front of me.

Dardanos sneered at me, his teeth bared menacingly. "They will be burned alive. You and your friends can watch." He finally took a look to the scene with the Guardians. He gave a low snarl as he saw his servant trapped. The edges of his lips twitched, producing a smug look as the earth that bounded Shara shattered to pieces. Cleo had become too weak to sustain it, and the creature proved too powerful. Her translucent wings spread wide, blank eyes staring as she summoned a line of blue flames to bar the weakened Guardians from the rest of the room. Even a twisted chuckle came from her. _**"So weak."**_ She commented before turning from them and towards her next prey.

I had finally approached Dardanos, my eyes as stern as his. "Leave them alone!" I commanded with my fists clenched tightly. "You can have me. All of my powers." I offered. My eyes darted to the Guardians, who were injured, yet still protesting my decision. "Just let my friends go." My eyes met back with his black ones.

Dardanos stood there, almost contemplating my proposition calmly. Then, a wicked smile overtook his features. "Burn them." He chuckled, snapping his fingers to cue Shara. Her grin turned insane, hands moving up in front of her chest, as if she was holding a ball. Between her hands, a large spark of fire began to form, growing larger as she aimed it at the imprisoned boys.

My head snapped to look back at Yuugi, his arm stretched out from between the bars towards me. I jerked forward, reaching my hand out, when Dardanos grabbed me by the wrist. Tears welled in my eyes as I knew I was going to be too late. Joey and Otogi were outstretching their arms to Daida and Cleo, one last goodbye from them. Honda sat with his head in his hands, never thinking he would go out this way. Ryou looked up at Shara, his chocolate eyes welling with tears. "Joan…Don't do this." He begged, but his words were meaningless. She raised the large ball of fire above her head, taking a moment before her arms swung down, fiery death imminent.

"No!"

**…**

Bree: You seriously left them with a cliffhanger?

Kinakao: Yes…Well…21 will be coming up shortly!

Cleo: Is that the end I see in sight?

Daida: Does that mean I get to be with Joey?

Find out next time! Please review!


	21. True Forms

Kinakao: Welcome back to Konnichiwa, Sayonara!

Daida: You left us in a tight spot last time!

Cleo: At least she didn't just stop...Imagine how much everyone would hate her?

Kinakao: Well then, so people can know what happened, let's move on! Oh, and this chapter was beta'd by the lovely Apherion.

Pegasus: Kinakao does not own YuGiOh, any of its places, people of things. She does own the Guardians, Shara, the dark tower, and Dardanos-boy.

Dardanos: I will eat your soul if you call me that again.

Please enjoy!

**...**

Chapter 21: True Forms

"No!"

The scream echoed through the room, silencing everyone else that watched. All eyes moved to the spot of origin: Shara. However, her normally blank, white eyes now had blazing blue hues shining through. The voice had also become stable, the brunette showing control of her own body. Her eyes stared down at Ryou, arms shaking as she tried to move the fire away from the intended target. Her face scrunched up, giving out a painful scream as she threw the ball of fire to the side, obliterating one of the walls. The night sky could be seen through the thick clouds. Joan was out of breath, falling to her knees as she looked to the white haired boy weakly, giving him a small smile. "Ryou…" She spoke softly, the tone contradicting her still transformed look.

Tears filled my eyes. "Joan…" I smiled at the name, never so happy to see her blue eyes before in my life. She was alive. She was still in her body. Suddenly, anger began to bubble inside me. I turned on Dardanos, struggling against his grip on me. "You lied to me." I growled with the tears in my eyes now fueled by rage. "You said she had been devoured!" My voice was rising in volume.

Dardanos showed nothing but murderous intent. "Stupid girl…" I could not tell if he meant me or Joan. "I'll have to feed her to the beasts of the Shadow Realm myself." He hauled me back towards the throne room chair, but Anzu stood in his way. She stood with arms outstretched, defying him with every inch. However, before she could even get a word out, with his free hand, Dardanos struck her down. The girl crumbled to the ground, letting her arm shield her injury from further harm.

Bree, who had managed to stand, saw the abuse. Her eyes widened, fury consuming her as she concentrated an orb of swirling wind in the palm of her hand. "Don't you dare touch Anzu or my cousin!" She shouted, her voice becoming shrill. She sent the ball forward, causing strong air currents to blow everything in front of it out of its way. This caused Joan to be forced up against the bars, between Ryou and Honda, and knocked Dardanos away from me. At my release, I held my ground, bending down to pick up Anzu, to help her get away.

Joan looked weakly at Ryou, the smile on her face fading. "Ryou…I love you." She confessed, holding her head to the bars. Ryou's stared at her, both overjoyed and surprised at her confession. He opened his mouth to respond, but her slender finger was faster. Firmly placing it upon him, she sealed his lips together to allow her more time. "Please…Kill me." Tears stained her grey cheeks as her begging voice weakened.

Ryou grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly, pulling it away from his mouth. "I could never do that. Joan, you mean everything to me." He protested. His chocolate eyes were unwilling to let her go.

Joan shook her head softly, wincing a little as she restrained herself. "You have to, Shara…Shara is going to take control again…The only way to get rid of her…" She quickly sucked in breath. Just holding back the invading spirit was becoming painful. "Please, before it's too late."

Honda, whom had been staring at them the whole time, placed his hand on Ryou's shoulder. "Dude, maybe you can't, but your evil self can. Let him do the deed." He suggested, completely serious.

The remaining three boys turned to look at their so-called friend. "Honda! We need to be working together to save everyone." Yuugi scolded, completely surprised that the brunette would even suggest something of the sort.

Dardanos had managed to lift himself up as he seethed with anger. "Shara!" His voice boomed. Suddenly, the blue eyes of Joan were gone, and replaced by blank white slates. Shara ripped her hand away from Ryou before rising to her feet. Her head twisted to look at the captives. She ignored the pleading looks as she moved swiftly to her master's side. "Grab the Ultamaiden." He instructed.

I knew I only had a limited amount of time, so I had to speak quickly. "Anzu, get to the other Guardians. Get Bree to cause a distraction while Daida and Cleo get the guys out." I managed out before I let go of the dancer. I started running in a separate direction, back to the door that had once been open. I hoped that they would leave her alone and follow me. Arms wrapped around me from behind, telling me that I was correct. Shara was much stronger than Joan. She was able to pull me back to Dardanos. "Let me go!" I screamed, kicking and struggling against my former friend.

The dark haired man came within an inch of me, any humor or offers of a deal for my survival gone from his features. "If you will not give me your heart willingly, I will take it by force." My eyes shut tight as he dug his nails into my chest. Teeth clenched together as I held back from screaming. I would not give him that satisfaction. I tried to outthink the pain. _What can I do…I can't use time…Only on myself…_ The searing pain shot through my body as he pierced through my skin.

Hope's voice rang in my head. _"Please, let me take over…"_ I tried to resist. I truly did. The pain was blinding to me, and I did not even have a day of training with my powers. She was the other part of me, and I knew I could trust her. I just wished I never had to return to the darkness again.

To my surprise, I found myself floating right above Dardanos, looking down at the scene. Or I was, until the symbol underneath his hand began to glow brightly. Then, Hope was gone. Shara stood empty handed, while Dardanos stood stupidly as he took in the fact that my body vanished. I wondered if Hope had turned back time, and that this whole thing would start to disappear. "Rhea…?" Yuugi's voice spoke in confusion. I turned to him, wondering if he could see me in my ghostly form, but his eyes were glued to my body, which now stood panting in front of the hole in the wall.

As quickly as I could, I made my way to Hope's side. Her eyes flicked up to me, an excited smile on her lips. **"I love that move…"** She purred. **"Speeding up time on the body…"** I realized what had happened. She had made herself move so incredibly fast that none of us had even noticed her escape. **"It's a toll for energy though…I can't move anymore."** My eyes stared down at her, the smile fading as she saw Shara aiming straight at her.

"Now!" Shouted Anzu, who had managed to get to the other Guardians. Bree rose in the air, throwing gusts of wind at the two enemies. Shara evaded the attack, but Dardanos was thrown back into the throne, the blasting air keeping him immobilized. Cleo and Daida moved beyond the wall of fire, which had been reduced to nothing but embers during the fight. They reached the cage, and began to attack it mercilessly with what strength they had left.

As Shara rushed at full force at Hope, I floated down in front of her, arms spread out to defend my friend. The white eyes gave me no mind, passing through my ethereal body to get to Hope. It was at the moment when I went through her body, that I felt something strange. Being a spirit had perks. I could pass through walls and people with no hindrance. However, right above Joan's heart was something that resisted my transparency. The rest of her body had been easy to get through. I turned in time, my eyes widening in horror as I watched Shara tackle the weakened Hope through the wall, and began to plummet towards the ground. "Rhea!" I heard the voices of the residences of this world cry out.

My soul plunged after the fallen two, catching up to them with immense speed. I found Hope struggling against her captor. Golden sleeves wrapped around Shara. Nails dug in to each other, and Hope would not allow Shara's wings to come out. **"If you even try, I'll rip one of them off."** The Spirit of Time threatened with her eyes darker than I had ever seen.

Shara shook her head. _**"You would not kill us both."**_ She spoke, taking Hope for all talk. _**"You don't even own that body."**_ She fiddled with Hope in her arms, trying to get the girl into submission. Just a little space for her wings was all that was needed.

"_No…But I do." _

Hope's golden eyes narrowed as she saw me, opening her mouth to protest. I closed my eyes, preparing myself for the impact as I thrust my spiritual body forward, taking back my spot inside my real one. Violet eyes opened to the snarl of Shara. The shock of accomplishment caused my struggles to be fruitless. My hands eased from the spot Hope dug into. Large translucent wings fluttered open, catching the wind to slow our fall. _**"Stupid girl…You're not fit to be the Spirit of Time**_." She mocked me as our fall began to slow.

I raised my hand up to her chest, a smile crawling across my face. Hope managed to read my mind, and began to shout at me in her floating form. _"Rhea, no! If you do that—"_

"I know." I said, resigned to my fate. My eyes sealed themselves calmly, the words I spoke given meaning by the rising power in my body. "Time, unravel yourself, turn back the clock," the symbol on my chest began to move rapidly, warming my entire body. "Show me what I seek, and let the future change." My eyes opened, glowing a brilliant gold. The symbol's arrows moved from my chest, down my arms. They moved off of my hands and rested over Shara's heart, where they began to spin backwards.

Shara let out a squeal of pain, her greytoned skin slowly fading back to the pinkish white it had once been. The dark marks on her face slowly ebbed away as her hair fluttered innocently about her face. Her eyes closed while her wings dissolved away, becoming nothing but glittering dust. The arrows slowly came to a halt before creeping back my arms back in place to the symbol. With their removal, a black shard pushed itself out of Joan's chest, floating towards me. I removed a hand from my friend, catching the shard with ease.

Joan's eyes opened with a groan, meeting with my golden ones. "Rh…Rhea?" She asked softly, confusion coating her worn features. As the glowing faded, my amethyst eyes welled with tears. I embraced my friend, who seemed astonished as she gently reached behind my back. "Rhea…you have…wings…" She spoke softly.

My attention drew away from her as I leaned my head back to inspect myself. There, on my back, were two bird sized wings. They had golden feathers that sparkled, even in the dim moonlight. Hope covered her mouth, watching my small wings flap to keep us from falling. _"You really are the Ultamaiden now…"_ She bowed her head to me respectfully.

I blinked a few time before looking at Joan again. "Do you know what that's supposed to mean?" She gave me a shrug. My eyes lifted up back to the tower, hearing the roar of Dardanos. "Either way…We need to get back up there." I spoke, struggling to make my wings flap faster to get back to our friends.

**…**

Bree was beginning to struggle. She couldn't hold on for much longer, and she knew as soon as the wind stopped, Dardanos would be on her friends faster than she could stop him. Now, Rhea had been captured by that monster, and there was nothing she could do. Cleo and Daida were having no luck on the bars either. Her vision was getting fuzzy, and her mind was full of colorful language. It was then that she felt the gentle touch on her shoulder. A bright eyed girl smiled at her. _"Mind if a real Guardian gives you a break?"_

The winds died down for a moment, surprising Cleo and Daida. Dardanos let out a massive roar as he rose to his feet, incredibly angered. Anzu looked up at Bree, whom had now become Aria. **"Wind Blades."** She spoke softly, raising her hands up as two whirlwinds formed in her hands, concentrating to the point where they looked to be solid swords. She jumped up, the winds under her causing her to float quickly to the bars. She sliced at them, but nothing gave. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Dardanos charging at them. One flick of her wrist sent a blade flying. It caught on his cloak, pinning him to the spot.

Daida looked down to Joey and beamed. "I'll be back…" She promised, winking at him as she gave in to her own alter ego. Dew rose up fully, gathering what water she had left around her. **"Water Shield."** Her velvet voice commanded. Water lifted from the battlefield, gathering between the cage and Dardanos. It hardened into ice.

Just as Cleo kneeled down to gently grasp Duke's hand; she knew she had to give in too. "I don't hate you." She spoke softly, giving him a reassuring smile. As soon as her eyes blinked, they were filled with power from Terra. Pulling her hands away, she spoke sternly. **"Stone Claws."** Pieces of shattered rock flew onto her hands, creating gauntlets.

"**Quick now, before Shara returns!"** Aria commanded, pointing Terra in the direction Dardanos.

"Before who returns, Aria?"

It seemed as if time had frozen all on its own for a moment. There, standing in front of the hole was both Joan and I. Dardanos' face twisted between shock and rage, unbelieving of the sight. "What did you do to Shara?" He demanded.

I stepped forward, wings gently fluttering. "You tried to hurt my friends, use my powers for evil, and take over the world." My voice rose with anger with each point. "You are going to see why we are the Guardians of the worlds!" My eyes shot to Joan, whom had already transformed into Ember. She looked ready for blood.

"**No one takes over my host and gets away with it."** Ember threatened, fire red eyes flashing with anger.

It was Terra who was on him first. She darted beside the cage, letting Dew lower the ice for her benefit. One swing of her fist made the bones in his cheek give a sickening crack. One of the bars on the cage disintegrated at the wound, astounding Aria. She aimed another, but his hand caught her fist mid-swing. Terra found herself flung from him, landing on her back.

Dardanos ripped his cloak to free himself, the wind blade fading away. He rushed toward Ember and me, roaring in rage and pain. Without warning, he was restrained. Dew melted her ice wall, using it as rope to bind him to the floor. Aria and Ember hovered over him, blade to his throat, red flames to his face. **"Release our friends."** Ember commanded, unwilling for compromise.

Dardanos weakly rose a hand, opening a hole below the cage. This one was different than before, making the boys cling for dear life on the bars as nighttime Domino laid beneath them. "Bree!" Anzu shouted as both she and I ran to the captives. We extended our arms to help keep them from falling, but we knew we did not have long.

Aria turned, eyes widening as she summoned up wind to push them upwards, acting a floor. While her concentration was away, Dardanos made his move. Dark tendrils ensnared Ember, locking her to the ground. Wrapping around her neck, they tightened, squeezing the life out of her. We all heard her scream; Daida acted by rising up Dardanos in his binds. He floated in the air, the bonds around him tightening as well. "You can't kill me…" He laughed darkly.

"We don't need to…" I spoke threateningly, my eyes glinting with gold. My hand was cutting into the dark shard. I removed myself from the cage, turning from them without remorse. I lifted the shard and with all my might, threw it into his heart. "Take this back, and never come back again!"

It pierced him, as if it had been the edge of a dagger. Slowly, it sunk into his body. "Shara…you're…with me…again." He spoke tenderly. His youthful looks faded, rapidly ageing into his older years, before turning to bones. His remains crumbled to the ground in a small pile. However, a black shadow still was being held in place by Dew's binds. There, in its chest, the dark shard turned white against the silhouette.

The scream that came from this creature was deafening. One could almost wonder if it was a scream. "I will have your powers!" It cried out. Horror seemed to cross all of our faces before it was engulfed in the white light. We winced away from it, but when it vanished, all we saw was a dark orb remaining on the ground, perfectly nestled in the dust of Dardanos.

All was quiet until Joey spoke up. "What exactly did you do to it, Rhea?" He asked, seeming slightly afraid of me.

I turned quickly, staring at him wide-eyed. "I…I…don't know." I confessed. I had not put any of my powers to use with it and I never had expected that outcome.

The bars on the cage disappeared, releasing the guys from their prison. Yuugi ran to me, embracing me. "It's okay, Rhea. I understand."He comforted me. I did not know what he meant until I noticed that his shoulder was damp and stained. Tears dripped down my face, both out of relief and fear. I buried my face in his neck, hugging him tightly.

Power drifted out of the Guardians as they were each given their own congratulatory hugs. Joey ran up to Daida, lifting the smaller girl into the air and hugging her. The blush on her face made her golden locks seem that much brighter. Joan and Ryou embraced sweetly, but Joan leaned in with more passion, kissing him with hunger. A red mark over her chest glowed softly, causing sparks around them to make Bree take a step back. "Guess Joan found her Chosen…" The Air Guardian murmured.

Otogi made his way over to Cleo, the brunette shooting him a wary look. "You don't hate me?" He asked, making sure it was not just her being nice because they might die. She nodded. A smile broke out onto his lips as he swept her up bridal style, embracing her tightly. She squirmed, but eventually sighed and shook her head.

"You still have a weird aura."

"As long as you like it."

As Honda and Anzu picked themselves up, Bree looked around her friends almost mournfully. Everyone seemed happy, even coupled. Yet, Bree knew she could not be that simple. It took her by surprise when two pairs of arms wrapped around her small frame. "You save us, Bree." Anzu and Honda spoke in unison. A red streak crossed her cheeks, matching her long mane. She smiled sheepishly at the two.

I lifted my head from Yuugi shoulder, wiping my tears away. He smiled at me, making sure I was better. I gave him a silent nod. He reached into his pocket and pulled out my beloved watch. "Bree found it after you had been kidnapped." He explained as he gently took my wrist and placed it securely back on. "She gave it to me to hold until we found you." He spoke softly, lifting one of his hands to tuck a stray lock of hair behind my ear.

"_**You all must leave." **_

Our attention was brought to a figure floating just above the black sphere. Her body was pure white, except for her eyes and hair. Her long dark mane swirled around her, reaching near her feet. White robes covered most of her body, flowing about her without any wind to generate it. She had very feminine features, showing her to look about Ishizu's age. Her eyes were a bright golden color, identical to Hope's. The mentioned spirit appeared beside me, her eyes welling with tears. _"Shara…"_ She whispered happily.

My eyes widened. "That's Shara?"

Everyone turned to me. "That's Shara?" They echoed my confusion.

The real Shara nodded slowly. _**"It is good to see you again, Hope."**_ Her eyes were gentle as she looked on to the spirit, but became hard as she warned. _**"You need to leave. With that demon gone, this place will crumble."**_ It was as soon as the words left her mouth that the tower began to shake. The candles were going out and the pillars began to deteriorate.

I pulled myself away from Yuugi, and rushed over to the sphere. "Then you're coming with us. You need to answer some questions!" I grabbed it up, and without a fight, Shara disappeared. I gripped onto the orb as I grabbed hold of Yuugi once more. A smile crossed my lips as I brushed them against his cheek. "Hold on to me." He willingly did so, and my small wings began to flutter rapidly, lifting us enough to allow us to slip through the hole in the center of the room.

"I always wondered if you were an angel."

Joan held on to Ryou tightly, swallowing harshly. "Hold on." She told him sweetly. He complied, and without any warning, Joan forced him to run with her, jumping down the hole after Yuugi and me. After freefalling for a moment, (Ryou shutting his eyes tightly out of fear), Joan let a stream of fire from her free and hand both her feet to slow their decent down to a nice pace. "Sorry for the scare," She apologized. "I didn't want to burn you."

Ryou looked up at her through his silken hair with a soft smile. "I appreciate it." He spoke in his accented voice.

Daida searched around for any remaining liquid, and managed to get enough to form the bubble around her and Joey. "It should be an easy ride down." She assured him, lifting them up before going down the hole after Joan. "Just don't try to pop it." She teased

"Nah, I won't." Joey shrugged, looking around at the thin lining. "But you think maybe you can teach me that whip thing?" He chuckled.

Cleo gathered what materials she had left and found that she could only take one passenger with her. Her eyes flicked to Bree who nodded in return. A sigh escaped Cleo's lips as she allowed Otogi to wrap his arm around her waist. They descended down the hole as well.

"So…are you going to fix that street?" Otogi teased her.

Bree floated up, raising her hands up to lift up Anzu and Honda beside her. "Let's go guys, before this whole place goes up in smoke." The roof was already gone, having disappeared into thin air. Following suit, Bree and her passengers passed through the hole.

"So…Was that Tower actually pretty cool before we were kicked out?"

**…**

****Daida: We...won?

Bree: Heck yes we did!

Joan: It's good to be back...And I have my Chosen now. Unlimited power!

Cleo: Does this mean...It's over?

Kinakao: Not yet, my dear fans! There are still many answers that need to be answered. I hope to post the next chapter up soon!

Please review!


	22. Hello, Goodbye

Kinakao: Hello, hello! Welcome back to Konnichiwa, Sayonara! Can you believe we've come this far?

Daida: Just seems like yesterday that we were just a bunch of random kids in here.

Joan: I can't believe the friends I've made.

Kinakao: Those friends also include the ones in the story. So, without further delay, here is the five Guardians with the disclaimer.

All: Kinakao does not own YuGiOh!, any of it's characters, places, or anything really. She does own all five of us, Shara, Dardanos, and everything dealing with her world.

Kinakao: Thank you! Now please enjoy the last chapter of Konnichiwa, Sayonara.

Enjoy!

**...  
**

Chapter 22: Hello, Goodbye

As I touched down with Yuugi, I looked skyward for my friends. All of them descended, bright faces contrasting with the dark skies above. Behind them, the dark tower crumbled; but instead of falling to pieces, it disintegrated into the clouds. Once it was fully gone, the stormy sky released the cleansing rain. I shielded my eyes from the cold drops, wanting to greet my friends. Daida's bubble popped as soon as she hit the pavement, dropping the two passengers. Luckily for the Water Guardian, she landed on top of the blonde duelist. Cleo landed with Otogi, shoving him away from her body as she placed what little pieces of earth she had left back into the crater. The dice master placed his hands on his hips as she tried to cover the giant hole with a small layer of dirt. "What?" She asked. He cocked an eyebrow at her. She rolled her eyes. "It'll do for now, promise." However, her voice strained as she spoke, making her way back to her emerald-eyed friend.

Bree allowed the gusts of wind to die down as she landed. She was out of breath and seemed barely able to hold herself up. It was just as Joan and Ryou lowered the flames to descend safely that we heard Joey's voice in a panic. "Daida, what's wrong with you?" He was shaking her shoulders vigorously. "Wake up!"

"Cleo!" We heard Otogi gasp as the Earth Guardian fell forward into his arms, barely missing the ground.

Bree collapsed to her knees, struggling to keep herself conscious. Breathing heavily, the red-head lost her fight. As Honda and Anzu grabbed her arms to catch her, Bree slipped into unconsciousness.

I felt the darkness closing in on me as well. It was that same warm darkness that seemed to take me every time. My mind was alert, but my body weakened rapidly. "Rhea?" I heard Yuugi's voice behind me. I tried to face him, but my body was unwilling to move. Before my eyes closed, I saw Joan running towards me, crying out my name. I knew what was happening to us. "It's finished." I whispered. The darkness consumed me, blocking out the falling rain.

**…**

I was floating. A smile crawled across my lips, having felt this so many times before. It was a pitiful smile that only intensified the ache in my core. The unusual part was the feeling of two arms holding me in this suspended existence. Violet orbs peeked out from under my lids to find the source. A blurred vision of spiky hair above me made the pain almost vanish. "Hi, Yami." I murmured.

His attention snapped to me, apprehensive hues staring at his luggage. "Rhea." His gravelly voice rumbled the name.

The scene cleared only slightly. I forced myself not to laugh, knowing this to just be one of my dreams. Brian might come wake me up any second once we arrived on the other side. "Was I too heavy for Yuugi to carry?" A strangled chuckle came from my dry throat.

Yami's face hardened. "No, I just…" His words faded when Anzu's voice caught his attention. I never did hear what she said. He turned his head from me, and the darkness he kept away with his watchful eyes closed back in, lulling me back to my slumber.

**…**

When my eyes opened next, I found myself staring at a blank wall. For a moment, I wondered if I was in my soul room. However, I realized I was lying on a soft down pillow and a neatly made bed. Unlike many times that I had slept before, I was on my side. I sat myself up, taking in the room I was in. It was Yuugi's room. My eyes wandered to a mirror that rested against the wall. The reflection showed a girl dripping in gold. A golden crown perched upon her locks, auric gown, and two small goldenrod fluttering wings. A chuckle emerged. "I'm dreaming." I concluded. One more happy dream of the world I longed to stay in. I pressed my way out the door. Blinking, I found a sleeping Yuugi on the floor next to the room. I knelt down next to him, leaning in and brushing his soft lips with mine. At the gentle touch, his eyes warily opened. It was then that shock overcame his features. "Rhea! You're awake!" His voice nearly went up an octave.

I did not feel like bursting the dream bubble. "Sort of." I rose to my feet while he stared at me strangely. I reached down to brush his spiky locks. They felt silky and real. Shooing my hand away, he stood up to take me into his arms. The pressure I felt against my chest and the tightness of the grip made me realize I was no longer in a dream.

"Get a room you two!" I heard the voice of Bree call from the stairs. If I didn't think I was awake before, I sure did now.

I turned to look at the red-head, but she had already scurried down the stairs. I returned to Yuugi, being greeted by an embarrassed smile. Salt water burned my eyes as tears ran down my cheeks. My arms flung around him, gripping his jacket tightly as I buried my face in his chest. "I thought…I thought…" I cried. I had been so sure that I would never see him again that I even blinded myself to reality. He stroked my hair patiently while my grip tightened on his sleeves. He allowed me my time to get all of my fears out on his shirt. Once I had calmed to the point of a hiccup here and there, I pulled away so I could meet his eyes. "Where are my friends?" I asked as slowly as I could.

He gently wiped my cheek with his forefinger, clearing up one side of my face of the glittering tears. "They're all downstairs." He sensed my unspoken question. "They're all okay."

I sniffed back any threats of tears before pulling fully out of his arms. "Can I see them?" He nodded cheerfully as he took my hand and led me down the stairs. The sight that awaited me made a smile burst on my face. In the game shop, foldable chairs had been set up to accommodate the extra company. They lined the shelves that normally displayed many duel monsters' cards, having six chairs on each side. Closest to my left, Daida, Cleo, and Joan sat in one line of chairs, while Bree and Anzu sat to my right. Others were mingling in the room: Joey attended to Daida, whom had just handed him her cup of tea, Honda kneeled next to Bree as he finished bandaging her leg, Otogi pulled a blanket over Cleo, making sure she was warm, and Ryou was serving more tea, while occasionally glancing at Joan.

Bree was the first to look up. She kicked out excitedly, almost knocking Honda across the room, as she pointed at me. "I told you she was awake!" The room went quiet as they focused on me. The four Guardians rose, handing off anything they were holding to the nearest person. All of them were covered in bandages and bruises, except for Joan, complete with their eyes were lit with questions.

First, I grabbed Bree by the neck, forcing her into a hug. Then Daida and then Cleo. Joan took up the back. A group hug commenced. Everyone was alright. But, I could not feel completely easy until my questions were answered first. "What happened to us?" My voice was more authoritative than I had anticipated.

Glances exchanged between everyone in the room before Joan spoke. "Your energy was drained from the fight." Her answer was simple. "The four of you collapsed when we escaped. Using your powers so much was a toll on your bodies." She nodded slowly, crossing her arms over her chest.

My eyes flashed up to hers. She seemed troubled and upset. "Why didn't it happen to you?" Eyes shifted their attention from me back to Joan.

She shook her head. "My body was taken over twice. I didn't use much of my own energy." She gave a sad shrug. Guilt of the events weighed heavily on her shoulders. It was written all over her.

Glaring at the girl, I released my friends from my grip. I silently pushed them out of my way as I walked slowly towards the Fire Guardian. I heard a small gasp from behind me, protesting me to be easy on Joan. I ignored them all the way until I was in Joan's face. "You know what I think?" My voice was dangerous. Her aqua eyes dropped from me, studying the floor. A smirk flashed across my expression, and in an instant, she was bounded tightly in my arms. "I think I've missed you so much!" My vice grip refused to release the stunned girl. Everyone gathered around us, a united laugh in my small practical joke.

"_**Your strength in friendship has made you prove yourself, young Ultamaiden."**_ Shara's voice echoed through the room. Our merriment ended as our eyes locked on the figure in front of the door. Innocently floating, Shara's face was serene as she peered upon us.

My arms released Joan to push her behind me, guarding the rest of my friends with my body. "What do you mean?" I questioned hesitantly. "What is this 'Ultamaiden' everyone keeps calling me?" The agitation is my voice was apparent. I did not exactly like being called something I did not know the meaning of.

The ghost placed a hand to her chest, true surprise shining in her golden eyes. _**"Hope did not tell you?"**_ My eyes flashed to the transparent girl by my side. The mentioned spirit shrunk back at the mention of her name. _**"I do not mean to offend,"**_ Shara's voice turned scolding. _**"But you need to be more informative, my partner."**_ Gold eyes locked on gold.

"Hope was your partner?" Daida gasped. "How?"

Shara's features lightened at the question, her attention now on the Water Guardian_**. "Long ago, I was the Spirit of Time, while Hope was my host."**_ She said, with a matter-of-fact inflection. The room paused in silence before letting out a uniform sound of disbelief. The side of her mouth twitched, attempting to disguise her smile. She tilted her head as she lifted her arm up, her robes flowing heavenly behind the motion before stilling completely. _**"Let me tell you a story, children."**_ Between her raised arm and body, an ornate pearl mirror materialized from the robes that once flowed there. The mirror flashed a soft white before showing us a reflection of someone we knew was not in the room: Dardanos.

"Hey! It's that guy that tried to kill us!" Joey yelled as he jabbed a finger towards the image.

The cheerful gleam dissipated from Shara's eyes as they gazed upon the looking glass. _**"Yes. Dardanos was alive eight thousand years ago."**_ Her voice tinged with remorse.

"How can that even be possible?" Yuugi piped up, drawing my attention to the fact that he now stood by my side.

The scene played out on the mirror: The reflection of Dardanos studied a blank canvas carefully, his eyebrows scrunched together in thought. A sound distracted him, his attention turned to a girl sitting beside his future painting. His face relaxed, overcome with an emotion we had not seen on his features. Golden eyes flashed at him. _**"Long ago, he was a painter. His skills were unsurpassable."**_ Shara began as the image of the black haired girl was stroked onto the canvas. Gold streaks made up the aurulent threads of her dress. Once he had copied her image, the room gasped.

"Rhea?" Ryou asked, bewildered hues locked on my back.

The girl mimicked my features flawlessly. However, the slightest curve of her softer eyes gave away the identity. I shook my head, but Shara answered for me. _**"No, dear boy, it is Hope's body, with my spirit."**_ The image of Hope almost floated to the dark haired man, brushing her lips chastely against his. Another gasp. _**"He was my chosen."**_ Shara continued, ignoring the shock. _**"He gave me a gift: A painting of the Guardians and myself. Earth, water, fire, air, and time locked together."**_ Soon, other figures were added to the painting: dabs of viridian, cerulean, crimson, and saffron made up figures below the original picture, each appearing completed upon the word of their element. Each matched the four Guardians that stood around me now.

Daida stared, jaw slacked. "I know that painting." The blonde pointed at it, her attention drawn to Joan and I. "Ishizu showed us that painting." Our eyes widened on her as she paused, her hand drawn up to her lips in an attempt to hold back the words that spilled through her fingers. "Didn't she say it was frozen in time?"

Shara's face hardened. _**"I was selfish. I did not know the limits of my powers."**_ The reflection showed Hope's body glow with power, before she placed her hands on both Dardanos and the painting. _**"The Guardians of my time had met their Chosen and moved on into the afterlife. I thought I could cheat time and spend an eternity with him by freezing his body in time."**_ The mirror flashed. A portal had appeared above the two lovers, trying to take the spirit away to a new world. As she began to float away, Dardanos reached up and grabbed her wrist, pulling her back down to him. _**"At the time, I did not know of the pact that Dardanos made."**_ The Shara outside the mirror seemed disgusted. _**"Selling his soul to a demon to keep me in this world." **_We watched as Shara's soul ripped itself apart from Hope's body as she clung to the man. The shell itself was flung into the portal, which closed immediately after. _**"Hope became a full Ultamaiden, and I was stripped of most of my powers as I remained here as nothing but a soul." **_At this last word, the mirror dissipated, leaving no traces of it ever existing.

Silence fell on us like a blanket of insecurity. There was almost nothing we could say. "You still did not answer me." I spoke softly. I knew it was pointless. "But, what is an Ultamaiden exactly?"

Shara bowed her head in an apology. _**"An Ultamaiden is a Spirit of Time who has acquired her full potential while she is in physical form."**_

Daida raised her hand, reminding us of being inside a classroom. "What did you mean the Guardians had moved on with their Chosen?" She refused to use the word Shara had.

"_**The Guardians are immortal if they have not encountered their Chosen." **_

Bree's grey eyes nearly bulged out of her head. "We can live forever if we don't meet the one we are destined for?" Shara nodded a silent reply. "Sweet! Guess I'm single forever, baby!"

The mood lightened as the redhead pumped her fist into the air. However, my eyes flickered to my Chosen, and then rested back on Shara. "Then, if you met your Chosen, why are you still alive?"

An element of sadness mixed into Shara's features. _**"Normally, when our Chosen dies, we die. Even though his soul was devoured by the demon, his body was still alive, leaving me in this limbo like state."**_ A ghostly finger directed our attention to the black orb behind us. _**"That is what remains. I am using what power I have left to negate yours, my young Rhea." **_

My jaw clenched. "My powers?" A part of my heart and the feathers of my back told me what she meant.

"_**You do not have much time for this world. Your purpose here has been fulfilled."**_ Her eyes never left the black orb. _**"Take it with you. I know it will be safe if you have it."**_

Ryou was the first out of us to ask the question. "Does that mean we can never see them again?" I noticed him intertwine fingers with Joan.

"We were just getting to know you guys." Joey jumped in defensively.

Cleo stared at the ground. "Rhea broke the only rule she had: She used her powers."

Joan, strong and brave, had burning salt rushing from her eyes. "It's all my fault." She sniffed. "She used her powers for me." Ryou pulled her to his chest, trying to comfort her.

"No." My voice silenced the room, forcing their eyes on me as I turned to face them. "I made the choice." Violet met violet as I gave a small twitch of my lips when speaking to Yuugi. "I was selfish. I wanted to stay here forever with you. I'm sorry." My heart panged with guilt as his eyes dropped from mine.

Otogi grasped Cleo's hand. "You're really leaving?" The Earth Guardian reluctantly nodded.

Anzu's ocean eyes batted away the salty water. "You can't go away yet." She protested. "You're our friends now."

The silent Yuugi stared at the floor. Amethyst eyes rose slowly, timid, shy, and unsure. Those were the same hues I met when I first came to this world. "Will you come back?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but Shara's shaking head caught my eye. "Once the portal is closed, it is sealed off from the Guardians and Ultamaiden." The words went through me like her spiritual body, my thoughts unphased.

"I don't know." I answered honestly. No matter how deep I dug, a half smile was the best I could dredge up. "But I can try."

It was not the action itself that stunned me, but the air that was ripped from my lungs as my ribcage was forcibly squeezed. The Millennium Puzzle pressed into me so deeply, it nearly replaced my spleen inside my body. Yuugi had rushed me, closing the space between us, and locking his arms tightly around me as if his grip could bind me to this world. I nestled my face into his neck, tears withheld. "At least you have something to remember me by." He choked out, referring to my watch.

Otogi's broke the stares that rested on Yuugi and me. "Cleo, I want you to have this." He moved his fingers to his ear, unhinging the die from his earlobe. With a gentle movement, he lifted her hands and placed the earring in them.

Cleo's green eyes flashed with embarrassment. "Are you sure?" For the first time, her cool exterior had been reduced to a flustered show. "But this is your trademark, it's practically—"

"Me, yes, I know." He cut her off with a sly grin. "If you are leaving for good, I want you to have something of me." He flipped his hair. "As if you could forget a guy like me." Cleo could not contain her small smile as she nodded with a blush.

Ryou watched for a moment before reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a duel monsters card. He pulled Joan back, giving her a moment to wipe her tears with the heel of her hand. "There, there." He comforted before showing her the card. "I know it's not much to offer, but it is my favorite card." He seemed dishearten that it was the only possession he could give her. "But, I hope it will remind you of me when I am not around."

Joan gently plucked it from his fingers, inspecting it. An androgynous character stood in both light and darkness, with wings that complemented both sides. A heart was held in the person's hands, as if offering it to her. Honda took attention to this gift. "But, Joan, I thought you did play—Hgn!" He was doubled over from a swift kick provided by Bree to his shin. Her eyes cut at him so deeply, it was amazing he was standing at all. Joan gave a brief glance of appreciation.

"I'll treasure it forever, Ryou." She smiled, pulling it to her chest.

Anzu placed a hand on Bree's shoulder, turning the red-head to face her. A smile crossed her lips, but Bree knew it had no heart in it, which made the girl stare with curiosity. Removing her digits from the girl, Anzu stripped her wrists of her bracelets before taking Bree's hand into her own and slipping the pink and blue bands on her. "So you can always remember us." The shallow smile burned at Bree's heart.

"Are you sure?" The Air Guardian asked, both surprised and skeptical of the gift after seeing Anzu's expression.

"They're my favorite." Anzu admitted, reluctant to see them go. "But, I'm sure." The brunette nodded cheerfully. "We'll be with you wherever you go." The smile offered this time was real. Bree refused to cry, but instead tightly embraced the taller girl.

Joey, watching everyone, scratched his head. His eyes fell onto the blonde girl beside him. Duty and panic forced his hand as he inspected his body for something he was willing to part with. His eyes fell on the dog tag that hung about his neck. He yanked it off his person before poking the small girl. "Here." He smiled at her. "So you can have something to remember me too."

Daida batted her eyes for a moment as she received the present. He placed it around her neck, letting it fall into place. Surprise had muted her as she raised her fingers to fiddle with the metal. She remembered when she had asked for it, and he said it was too important to give up. Her eyes stared past it, gazing at his shoes. "Joey…" She began nervously. The blonde boy felt a shiver up his spine, afraid he had upset her instead. "I may never get another chance to say this, so here goes…" She took a deep breath. "I like you."

Relief washed over his face. Not in trouble. "I like you too, Daida. You're one of my pals."

Daida shook her head. "You're not getting it." She almost felt frustrated. She had almost always been obvious with her feelings for him. "I like you more than as just a friend. I always have." His blank stare of confusion exacerbated the girl. "I love you, okay?" She practically shouted it out.

At first, shock overwhelmed him. After a moment to let it sink in, his eyes softened before he reached out and took her into his arms. "I wish you had told me sooner. Maybe we could have seen how things could have gone." He pecked the top of her golden locks. Daida began to emit a soft blue glow to contrast with her reddened cheeks. It did bring our attention straight to her.

"Three awakened Guardians?" Cleo spoke rhetorically, unbelieving.

"_**It is time."**_ Shara's voice beckoned to us. The door to the game shop burst open before the spirit floated out of it. Bree and Cleo went after obediently, Joan and Ryou followed suit, as did everyone else, including a disinclined Yuugi. Instead of going out the door, where I saw my Chosen waiting for me, I turned on my heel, stepping towards the dark orb that rested harmlessly on the counter. I picked it up, rolling it over in my hand once before shutting my eyes. A breath escaped my lips, and with a one-eighty, I was out the door.

**…**

Shara floated for a moment, smiling to me as she began to dissipate. _**"I wish you luck in your life, Ultamaiden."**_ Her body took to the disintegration slowly, starting at her limbs. But, once it reached her core, the process was faster. Soon, nothing but her voice was left. _**"I'll be watching over you."**_ She promised, as her parting breath gave way to a moment of stillness.

"How are we going back?" Bree broke the silence with her question as she looked around. As if on cue, the feathers protruding from my back began to drop from their perch. Just before impact with the ground, the shining feathers propelled themselves forward, forming a lustrous chain. Once all of the feathers were used, the golden rope whirled about; making a ring around a glowing portal that had formed in the space inside it.

I stepped forward, my feet drawn towards the swirling barrier. I twisted my head to look around, catching sight of my four friends who were also under the same spell. As we walked into the gateway, I could only see a few dry eyes in the friends we were leaving behind. Ryou ran forward a little, shouting to us, "I'll try to send letters, Joan!" He remembered how he had gotten me there. "Just don't forget me!"

I glanced to Joan, and saw that she was the first to go through the portal. She had heard, but as her mouth moved, I realized her reply was muted on this side. My body was already attempting to pass through as well. I tried reaching back, knowing my time was up. "Yuugi!" I cried out, twisting my body to the point where it hurt. "I love you!"

A small smile broke out on his face. He ran towards the void, reaching for my hand, but it was too late. I slipped beyond the veil. I saw his lips move, but no words could be heard. Yami appeared next to him, his eyes filled with regret. A gasp escaped my lips as I also spotted the dark shadow of Ryou's other half looming behind him. I could now see everything I would have in my world. As my hand slipped inside, Yuugi crashed into the barrier, which caused him to be thrown back several feet. Rotating myself to where I could press up against the window between us, I saw the group run to him to ensure his health. Darkness started to close in around me, closing my sight into their world, but I refused to allow the inconvenience to deter me. "Yuugi! I'll come back for you!" I called, even when he couldn't hear me. I began to beat my fists against the glass-like screen, bashing them until I nearly felt the skin break. Even then, I did not stop. "Yuugi! Yuugi!" I cried out.

As the portal closed, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned to face the Guardians, who shared their dispirited glances with me. The one attached to my shoulder was Daida. She shook her head sadly. My tears streamed down unhindered as everything started to go black. I had known all along that this was nothing more than just a short hello, then goodbye. Our adventure in that world was unforgettable. As the velvet closed in over my eyes, I promised myself that this would not be the end.

**…**

As Yuugi was flung from the portal, his friends came to his aid. He looked up, seeing Rhea pound desperately, shouting something he could not understand. The chain of feathers closed in around the Guardians, before completely erasing them and the portal from existence.

"They're gone." Anzu murmured. It was really all she could get out, before that moment vanished. In a blink of an eye, the world of YuGiOh had restored itself to a point without the Guardians influence. The friends resumed their lives, dueling, laughing, and saving the world. Every so often, one of them would tell the others about dreams they had: About girls that could control elements. It seemed silly even to them. Even though none of them recalled their otherworldly friends, when Otogi would walk home, he found himself taking the long way around the park, just to smell the flowers. Joey would sneak out from his house during the night to see if he could go to the beach, never sure why he wanted the ocean waves to calm him. Each time the breeze tousled Anzu's hair and skirt, she always felt at ease. When Ryou lit a candle while the power was out, it almost felt as if the light was enough to erase his dark side away. Whenever Yuugi watched the clock as the seconds groaned by in the classroom, he felt as if it was bringing him closer to more than just his freedom from the school walls. With the faint marks there, it almost seemed right leaving the world in a balance where the Guardians of Time had never interfered.

**…**

Kinakao: Thank you so much for your time with reading this story. I have to give a special thanks to my reviewers. Without you, I may have never finished this story. A special shout out to: Dontgotaclue88, dream lighting, and Apherion.

Be sure to check out the Epilogue, which I will post to this story by next week. Until then, I hope you have enjoyed your time here. We'll see you soon!


	23. Epilogue

Kinakao: Hello, hello! Welcome to our last chapter of Konnichiwa, Sayonara! It's just a bit of a wrap up, and takes place in our world. So, here is a little help to help jog your memory of who is who!

Mari/Rhea, Charity/Daida, Tamora/Joan, Rayen/Cleo, and Brian/Bree.

I do not own YuGiOh, but I do own these characters.

Enjoy!

**…**

Epilogue: Friends, Promises, and Sleepless Nights

The gold hands ticked by slowly as the time approached twelve twenty-one. I stared at the face, waiting for the precise moment. As soon as the second hand ticked past twelve, I muttered, "Naru saki la sou otu" as quickly as I could. Then, the wait. Tick. Tick. tick. Time moved on to twelve twenty-two. My eyes flickered up to meet with black eyes. They were unsurprised, and yet disappointed. I lowered my wrist while a unison sigh escaped our lips.

Charity's blue hues stared at the ground as she walked. "You try that every day, Mari." She shifted her bag, adjusting her step to keep up with Tamora and me. "Every hour too. You almost got detention yesterday because you did it during class twice." Her head shook with disapproval.

I had begun testing all numerical palindromes with Tamora's chant, including two oh-two and two twenty-two during my math class with Mrs. Tobin. Both I and the Principal had thought it was reasonable enough for my disobedience when the teacher had been yelling at a "Miss Mahogy" instead of at my name. He had at least sent me off with a warning. "I'm just trying." I confessed. The glint of my watch caught my attention, allowing my eyes to wander over the gold and diamond leaves. It was the exact same as it had been the day it was given to me in the world of YuGiOh. Curiously enough, all of the presents we had received on the day we left that world remained nearly unchanged. This included the dog tag that jingled on Charity's bow. "I suppose you leave that out in front of your shirt, Miss Perfect?" My tone teased the blonde.

She flushed, grasping the metal in her fist and shoved it down the front of her blouse. "Of course not!" We all knew jewelry that hung too long was banned from the uniform. "Anyways, aren't we suppose to be having lunch with Rayen?" diverting the subject.

"Brian said that he was going to wait with her at the fountain." Tamora spoke thoughtfully. "You four are going to teach me duel monsters today, right?" She shifted her gaze between the two of us.

I had almost forgotten that even the card that Ryou had given her had remained the same. We had decided to teach her how to play, so that she could have fun with us as well as when we got back to the other world. Charity took her chance to hand Tamora a deck she had made for the Fire Guardian while she shot me an uncomfortable glance. "Are you sure it's wise for Brian to be alone with Rayen on this side?" She crossed her arms over her chest.

"I'm sure it's fine." I laughed. "After all," I started as we arrived to the courtyard, seeing the fountain only a few more yards away. On the stone wall that provided a playing space, Rayen and Brian sat opposing each other in a duel, deeply invested in the game. It was not until Rayen seemed to sense us that she looked up, with Brian following her cue. Smiles broke out on their faces as they waved us over. "We are all friends now."

**…**

"Say, the fountain wasn't always like this, was it?"

Tamora and I looked up from our card game, staring at the goddess of luck. For as long as we had remembered, the water in the fountain had stopped flowing, giving the statue a mournful demeanor. Now, while we had begun the first lesson of duel monsters, crystal clear liquid flowed freely, making the fountain glisten in its radiance. The goddess smiled down at us, the stone features oddly familiar to us. "Is that…" Tamora began.

Brian looked over to another dueling pair and called to them. "Hey, when did this thing start working again?" He pointed towards the statue, the blue and pink bracelets clinking as he did so.

The two duelists looked up from their match, to the fountain, then back to the boy. However, the looks he received were not what he was expecting. "It's always been like that." One answered, confused. "Yeah man, where've you been?" The other snorted before returning to his cards.

I focused on her face. Those sleek lines and eyes were different than we had last seen them, but there was no mistaken it. "It's Shara." I smiled softly.

Charity blinked a few times, astounded. "Is it because her soul was released from that shard?" She looked incredulously at the woman. "Did we mess up the timeline even here?" Her voice lowered.

Rayen raised her hand to her ear, gently stroking the die that hung from it. "No...I think we actually fixed everything." Her smile was nearly invisible, but we could all feel it. "Everything sort of feels… right, yet not."

I instinctively rubbed my fingers over the face of my watch. "We saved the world, learned amazing powers, and then returned to normal lives." I spoke softly, almost sadly, to the statue. "And yet she did keep her promise to watch over us." I closed my eyes. "I hope we can keep our promise."

Brian sat behind me as he gave a thumbs-up. "You know we will, Mari. I'll wear these bracelets every day until I can go back." He encouraged.

A smile danced across my lips, but inside, I was starting to grow tired of my name.

**…**

I stared at my ceiling as I lay in bed. My eyes were heavy with the yearning for dreams, but some part of my mind refused to allow my rest. I would twist and turn, trying to become comfortable, but I found dawn came before any slumber. This night, it always already four in the morning. "I can't sleep." I spoke to myself.

"_You seem to not to these days."_ Hope spoke softly in my mind. I dearly wished I could just see her, so I could have a glimpse of the world I left behind.

"Can you tell me a story?"

"_A story?"_ She asked quizzically. I had never made such a request, so I wasn't shocked by her surprise.

"Yeah…a story." I nodded, looking up to where she might have been if she floated next to me like she always used to.

"_Mari, I—"_

"Don't call me that." I snapped at her, a little more forcefully than I had intended. "Not you."

I could almost feel her become slightly agitated with me. _"…Rhea then."_ She gave in_. "I hardly think that a girl your age needs a bedtime story to sleep."_ She sounded so mothering, it just made me sigh. I already had one in this world.

"Please…Just tell me a story about your life." I closed my eyes, trying to visualize her once more. "When you were…alive." It seemed to be the only word that fit the scenario.

I heard her sigh and a small smile crept across my lips. _"Do you promise to go to sleep if I do?"_ I nodded eagerly. She paused before giving in to my spoiled request. _"Once upon a time,"_ She began traditionally, her voice becoming soft in my ear_. "Long ago, in a distant world, I found myself in the mysterious land of Egypt…" _

I had already begun to drift into the darkness of sleep. The coolness of it relaxed me, allowing me to dream of a day I could go back to the world I loved.

**…**

Kinakao: Thank you so much for reading my story. In case you were wondering, yes. There is a sequel. I'm not sure when it will be up, but I promise you that it will exist. There will also be more added to the secret chapters and there is a possibility of a side story as well. Please review this story and I hope to see all of you next time!

Goodbye from Konnichiwa, Sayonara!


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